Bayelsa Senator Seriake Dickson has commended suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State for remaining calm and peaceful amidst the political development in the state.
President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State last month and suspended all elected officials, including Mr Fubara.
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The president cited oil pipeline attack and the prolonged political crisis in the state triggered by a political feud between Mr Fubara and the Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike, as the reason for the declaration of emergency rule. He appointed Ibok-Ete Ibas as the sole administrator for the state.
In his visit to Mr Fubara at his private residence in Port Harcourt on Friday, Mr Dickson, a former governor of Bayelsa State, said they both discussed “extreme political development in the state.”
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“I appreciated his calmness and peaceful disposition amidst unprecedented turbulence,” Mr Dickson said in a post on Facebook. He also shared pictures and a short clip of the visit on his Facebook page.
Ijaw people not at war with Tinubu
As the face-off between Governor Fubara and the pro-Wike lawmakers intensified, some Ijaw groups threatened to attack oil pipelines if Governor Fubara was removed. Mr Fubara hails from Opobo Nkoro Local Government Area, which consists of a large population of the Ijaw ethnic nationality.
The trans-Niger oil pipeline, which transports crude oil from Bayelsa and Rivers to the international terminal, eventually came under attack, an action Mr Tinubu cited as part of the reason for declaring emergency rule in the oil-rich state.
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After the president transmitted the emergency rule proclamation to the National Assembly for ratification, Mr Dickson staged a walk-out, saying he and a few other senators resisted the proclamation but were not allowed to openly debate the issue during plenary.
During the visit to Fubara, Mr Dickson, in the Facebook post, commended the people of Rivers State for maintaining peace amidst “extreme and rare political development” but noted that “it may very well be the peace of a graveyard which, any little trigger can alter the balance of peace in the state and across the Niger Delta region.”
He urged the Ijaw people to remain peaceful and resist any provocation or incitement to violence.
“They should refrain from violence and destructive tendencies, particularly the destruction and vandalisation of strategic oil and gas infrastructure in the region, which tends to cause further pollution-damage to our already compromised environment, slow down the pace of economic development and activities in the region, and create fiscal challenges for government at all levels in the country, especially at this time when the global economy is experiencing unprecedented instability with consequences for all nations.
“The Ijaw Nation is not at war with the president or the APC-led federal government. On the contrary, the Niger Delta and the Ijaw Nation have always stood for a restructured and truly federal Nigeria where power is properly devolved, accelerated infrastructure and human capital development, environmental justice and fairness for all, and an inclusive Nigeria.
“On all these issues, we are encouraged to see the President as a partner from his antecedence and not a foe irrespective of party differences as some may portray,” Mr Dickson said.
Dickson’s message to River administrator
Mr Dickson advised Rivers administrator, Mr Ibas, to refrain from actions that do not build confidence and aid in quick and amicable crisis resolution.
Mr Ibas has been criticised lately for certain actions in the state. Shortly after assuming office, the administrator dissolved some state government agencies.
On Tuesday, he reconstituted some agencies, including the Civil Service Commission and the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, drawing criticism from the public.
A former governor of the state, Ada George, described Mr Ibas’ appointment of sole administrator of the 23 local government areas in the state as illegal and vowed to seek legal action.
READ ALSO: Emergency Rule: Why I walked out of Senate chamber Seriake Dickson
The founder of the Albinism Foundation, Jake Epelle, has also criticised the sole administrator for appointing administrators for local government, saying that Mr Ibas’s action suggests that Mr Fubara may have been removed, not suspended.
The Nigerian Bar Association has also moved its 2025 Annual General Conference from Port Harcourt to Enugu in Enugu State in protest, saying Mr Ibas was governing Rivers State as though the state is under military rule.
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