President of the Ijaw National Congress, Prof. Benjamin Okaba, has said that Governor Siminalayi Fubara should not be criticised for considering a defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) if such a move would help resolve the political crisis in Rivers State.
Okaba made this statement during an appearance on Channels Television’s Morning Brief on Thursday, following Governor Fubara’s recent meeting with President Bola Tinubu in Lagos.
Reacting to speculation about Fubara’s potential switch to the APC, Okaba said, “There’s nothing wrong about that.”
He explained that the current political reality in Nigeria has blurred the lines between party ideologies.
“At this point, we must be realistic, and we must have an understanding of the Nigerian politics,” he said. “We operate a ‘malutocracy’; we don’t have political parties anymore, but platforms for political contestations.
“What we have are just platforms put together from people to transmit or oscillate from one place to another. If we have state governors and former vice presidential candidates of parties just moving on, to the extent that one of the governors said, ‘If you don’t move with me, I will sack you,’” he added.
Okaba also referenced Governor Fubara’s recent declaration that he would do whatever it takes to restore peace in the state.
President Bola Tinubu had, on March 18, declared a state of emergency in Rivers State, suspending Governor Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the state House of Assembly for six months. The President also appointed retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ette Ibas as the state’s administrator to oversee governance during the suspension.
