The factional Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State, Dr Robinson Ewoh, has explained his group’s decision to align with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barrister Nyesom Wike, ahead of the 2027 general elections, saying the move is driven by support for the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Ewoh accused Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, of misleading the PDP by claiming he could wrest political control of the state from Wike, only to abandon the party midway into his tenure.
Speaking to journalists in Port Harcourt, Ewoh alleged that rather than pursue reconciliation following the lifting of emergency rule in the state, Governor Fubara resorted to claims that President Tinubu would compel members of the Rivers State House of Assembly to pass the budget and force Wike to back his re-election bid.
He further demanded that the people of Rivers State be fully informed of the terms of the peace agreement allegedly brokered by President Tinubu before the emergency rule was lifted.
According to him, the mandate held by Governor Fubara was freely given by the people of the state and, as such, any agreements entered into during the peace process should be disclosed in the interest of transparency and accountability.
Ewoh traced the origin of the political crisis in Rivers State to disagreements between Governor Fubara and members of the State House of Assembly within his first year in office. He said the dispute escalated into the bombing of the Assembly complex, prompting the intervention of President Tinubu, who brokered an initial peace accord.
He noted that the collapse of the agreement plunged the state into prolonged political instability, which eventually led to the declaration of a state of emergency in March 2025.
Ewoh alleged that many party members were misled by propaganda into believing that Governor Fubara could dislodge Wike’s political influence in the state, saying the true situation was concealed from them.
He added that a second peace agreement was later reached during the period of emergency rule but was neither documented nor made public. According to him, the breakdown of that agreement culminated in Governor Fubara’s defection from the PDP to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in December 2025.
Ewoh said the PDP had approached the Supreme Court to challenge the declaration of emergency rule in order to protect its mandate, only for the governor to later defect to the APC with that mandate.
He also criticised Governor Fubara’s role in the PDP National Convention held in Ibadan in November 2025, noting that although the governor was still a member of the party at the time and supervised preparations for the convention, he failed to attend the event. He described the dissolution of the Rivers State Executive Committee at the convention as an act of double standards.
On the constitution of the PDP Rivers State Caretaker Committee, Ewoh maintained that it was validly formed by the party’s National Working Committee in December 2025 following the dissolution of the state executive. He said the committee was nominated by several senior party leaders, including former PDP National Chairman Prince Uche Secondus; former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Austin Opara; former Minister, Abiye Sekibo; former Governor, Celestine Omehia; and former Senator, Lee Maeba.
Ewoh also referred to Wike’s recent “thank you” visits to the 23 local government areas of the state, during which the FCT Minister reportedly accused Governor Fubara of breaching agreements reached before the lifting of the emergency rule.
According to him, the alleged agreements included conditions that the governor would not seek a second term and would implement specific changes in his administration, which were said to have been ignored.
While stating that the issue of a second-term ambition is now a matter between Governor Fubara and his new party, the APC, Ewoh insisted that Rivers people deserve full disclosure of all agreements reached during the peace process.
He urged the governor to address the people of Rivers State, Nigerians and the international community on the full details of the peace agreements brokered by President Tinubu, ahead of the 2027 general elections.
