I Am APC’s 001 in Rivers — Fubara says, pledges total loyalty to Tinubu

Rivers State governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has openly declared full allegiance to the All Progressives Congress (APC), assuring President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of a “smooth ride” in the 2027 general elections.

Fubara made the declaration on Friday during the flag-off of the Rivers Airport Bypass Project, where he announced that he had not only defected to the APC but had also taken the symbolic position of the party’s “Number One” member in the state.

“Today, I am very happy. I am not just a member of the APC, I am the number one. I have collected my card and the form is 001,” he said.

“So, from this moment, I am there with all my chest and heart. The message is clear: we are going to do everything to make the 2027 election for Mr President a smooth ride in Rivers State. And how do we do it? It is with all of you here.”

“With your support. The only way we can continue to tell Mr President ‘thank you’ is to support him.”

Fubara’s bold declaration came just days after he formally dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the APC, along with 15 lawmakers of the Rivers State House of Assembly, including the speaker, Martin Amaewhule.

But the governor’s defection and new political posture come against the backdrop of renewed hostilities between him and the state assembly, months after the lifting of the emergency rule imposed on the state.

On Thursday, the assembly accused Fubara of engaging in unapproved spending and awarding contracts to close associates.

The lawmakers alleged that the governor had been spending without legislative approval since September.

This accusation followed Fubara’s earlier claim that there was no lingering dispute between him and the assembly, insisting that narratives of his refusal to engage with lawmakers were “pure lies”.

According to him, several attempts to meet with the leadership of the assembly since his reinstatement had yielded no response.

But Speaker Amaewhule countered the governor’s claims, insisting that lawmakers met with Fubara in September at the behest of Nyesom Wike, Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

He accused the governor of backing out of agreements reached during the meeting.

https://twitter.com/theverynigerian/status/1999527210814669154

As political tensions in the oil-rich state flare anew, Fubara’s alignment with the APC, coupled with his pledge to deliver Rivers for Tinubu in 2027, signals a dramatic reshaping of the state’s power dynamics, with implications that may reverberate far beyond Rivers.

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