President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday held a high-stakes reconciliation meeting with the key political actors from Rivers State, resolving the prolonged and bitter dispute between Governor Siminalayi Fubara, FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
The closed-door meeting, which took place at the Presidential Villa, was attended by Governor Fubara, Minister Wike, Speaker Martins Amaewhule, and other members of the state assembly. The gathering marked a crucial breakthrough in efforts to end a crisis that had engulfed the oil-rich state since early 2025.
It was gathered that the President has formally reconciled the factions whose feud led to the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State on March 18, 2025. The rift between Governor Fubara and his former political mentor Wike had deeply divided the state’s political landscape, with tensions rising to a level that the President described at the time as dangerous for democracy and national security.
During the emergency period, Tinubu suspended the governor, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and members of the Rivers State Assembly, citing Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution. He appointed retired naval chief Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd) to oversee the administration of the state.
Thursday’s meeting, however, has altered the tone and trajectory of the political crisis. Photos from the engagement show the President, Governor Fubara, and Minister Wike smiling and shaking hands, with body language suggesting a thaw in what had been a bitter standoff. A video clip from the meeting showed all parties in cordial conversation, flanked by members of the Rivers Assembly in what observers described as a “symbolic reunion.”
Though no official communiqué was issued after the meeting, sources within the Villa hinted that the state of emergency may soon be lifted, allowing for the reinstatement of the elected officials and a return to democratic governance in the state.
Governor Fubara and Wike have been at loggerheads over the control of the state’s political structure, with Wike’s loyalists in the Rivers Assembly threatening impeachment proceedings and citing alleged failures to implement Supreme Court directives.
The political impasse drew widespread condemnation from across the country. Prominent figures including Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Rotimi Amaechi, Femi Falana, Nasir El-Rufai, and organisations such as the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Labour Party (LP), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) all denounced the suspension of democratically elected leaders and called for dialogue.
The March 18 intervention had marked the first declaration of emergency rule since 2013, when former President Goodluck Jonathan imposed it on Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa States due to the Boko Haram insurgency.
With Thursday’s reconciliatory meeting, political observers are optimistic that Rivers State is on the path to restoring political stability and governance.
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