The whereabouts of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, remain unclear amid speculations over his possible return to Port Harcourt following the end of emergency rule in the state.
Naija News had earlier reported that the Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.), formally handed over to the reinstated governor on Thursday after President Bola Tinubu lifted the six-month emergency rule.
In his farewell broadcast, Ibas urged residents to rally behind Fubara as he resumes the leadership of the oil-rich state.
Providing updates on the situation, Arise Television’s Rivers State correspondent, Friday Olokor, reported on Thursday that the state has remained calm despite the political uncertainty.
He, however, noted that the absence of the governor has created “a vacuum in governance,” with residents anxiously awaiting clarity on when Fubara will return to the state capital.
Olokor also highlighted that the Rivers State House of Assembly remains factionalised, with members of the rival blocs holding separate meetings.
According to him, the political divisions are deepening challenges for residents, who “continue to bear the brunt of the crisis.”
He added that expectations are high that both factions of the Assembly will work towards reconciliation to avoid a repeat of past political instability in the state.
He said, “Yes, thank you very much, as is expected right now in Rivers state, Port Harcourt specifically, the atmosphere is cool. There is no problem. The fact is that, for right now, the whereabouts of the governor is not still known, even though there are speculation that he might come in today.
“Rivers state is being bandied as the hotbed of political antagonism but from what we are seeing right now, the atmosphere is cool, calm, cozy. There’s no problem. And for the House of Assembly, we are still expressing some members of the House of Assembly right now.
“Well, like as you know, leadership is not supposed to have a vacuum. But since the governor is not around down, the atmosphere is tense, and the people of Rivers are waiting because nobody really know the whereabouts of the governor.
“So as it is now, the sole administrator, everybody, they are waiting to see what’s going on. But with the way it is now, nobody knows the time the governor is going to be around and how the handover is really going to be.
“Whatever I am going to tell you is going to be what I would call a political conjecture. For right now, it is the same, and nothing has really been known about the whereabouts of the governor, whether he’s going to come or not.
“Of course, normally, since a new government is coming back, now, the feeling is that the members of the state assembly, even though factionalised, will be meeting in separate places to really put the acts together, because the state has suffered a vacuum in terms of legislation.
“The people have really suffered like it is said that where two elephants fight, it is the ground that suffers. The people of Rivers state have suffered a lot, and it is believed that they should come together to write, put things together, to really move everything forward.
“For right now, the members of the House of Assembly, it is believed that they might be meeting somewhere, the 20 members of the House of Assembly belonging to the APC and the other three. It is understood that they are meeting separately, trying to put this in order to make sure that the act of legislation continues.
“Definitely based on fillers, individually, there’s no way you cannot rule out the fact that factions will still be there, even though elections have been held and won.
“What matters is they coming together to put the past behind them, to move ahead, because the state, the people of the state have suffered. And the crave here is that history should not repeat itself again.”
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