A former Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Victor Ochei, has explained the reason President Bola Tinubu described the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, as the political leader in Rivers State.
Ochei said the president’s remark does not diminish the authority of the Rivers State governor, Sim Fubara.
According to him, the statement should be understood within its proper context, noting that Tinubu views Wike as a prominent political figure in Rivers State rather than through the lens of party affiliation.
He urged Nigerians to carefully consider the circumstances under which the president made the comment.
DAILY POST had reported that during a peace meeting involving the FCT Minister and his political ally, President Tinubu reportedly told Governor Fubara that Wike, despite not belonging to the All Progressives Congress (APC), is the political leader of all parties in Rivers State.
The president also advised Wike to halt the impeachment process against Fubara in the interest of peace, while urging the governor to focus on governance and avoid early discussions about a second-term bid.
Speaking on Arise News, Ochei said, “Let me say what the problem is. People need to learn to contextualize statements. It’s a statement made by the President. Now his rating of the Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike, is that he is a leader in Rivers State. As River State is today, Nyesom Wike is a leader and works in his [Tinubu’s] cabinet. And besides being a cabinet minister for him, he is a leader of note in Rivers State.
“So he speaks to his own governor, who is an APC. Hey, relax, whatever it is. Wike is the number one. It’s not a statement to say that has changed the position of how governors are seen. However, the president made his own statement. Take the context, not as saying, “Oh, your constitution says this,” and then it’s 100% like that. That’s not the meaning. People try to impute other meanings into it.
“That does not take away the party. Chairman, what did he say? The governor is 001. The president is speaking; he’s a leader of our party, and he says Wike is the leader, whether in APC or PDP. He sees Wike as River State. He doesn’t see Wike from the prism of APC.
“So all this lies in contextualization, and I think that’s where the major issue is; people are seeing it from that point and not really dealing with the context upon which the statements were made. And if you need to say or make a statement, you need to know and understand it this way. The President needs to make a case where you’re bringing peace, and you don’t want to sound like you’re putting down one in favor of another, or the outcome will be disastrous.
“Now, as a leader, you balance situations, and this is the president balancing situations. But people will always pick on the other side. Oh, this is what it is. It is not cast in stone. Contextualization is much, even much more important, because leaders are always misunderstood, misconstrued, and misrepresented, but that’s what makes them great leaders.”
