A public affairs analyst, Mahmud Jega, has said Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has made history as the first All Progressives Congress (APC) governor to be denied a re-election bid.
PrimeTimes Nigeria reports that Jega stated this on Friday during an interview on Arise Television.
He was reacting to Fubara’s withdrawal from the APC governorship primary in Rivers State on the eve of the exercise.
Jega said the outcome would not surprise anyone who had followed political developments in Rivers State over the past three years.
He said, “What happened in Rivers couldn’t have been surprising to anybody who has been observing the development in the last three years.
“Fubara has made history as the first APC governor denied a re-election bid, including the ones who defected from other parties.”
The analyst said Fubara’s withdrawal appeared to be linked to the peace arrangement brokered by President Bola Tinubu between the governor and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
Jega said, “Clearly this is the outcome of the peace that President Bola Tinubu brokered between him and the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.
“It looks like the kernel of the settlement was for the majority of Wike’s state assembly members not to impeach Fubara, on the other hand he should not run for a second term in 2027.”
Fubara Withdrew After Consultations
Fubara had withdrawn from the APC governorship primary scheduled to hold on Thursday in Rivers State.
He announced the decision in a statement personally signed by him on Wednesday night and titled, “My Decision to Withdraw from the Rivers State Gubernatorial Primaries.”
The governor said his decision followed extensive consultations with family members, friends and political associates.
He added that he would fully support whoever emerged as the party’s gubernatorial candidate.