The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, on Monday hosted a dinner for the suspended members of the Rivers State House of Assembly in the United Kingdom. The development comes at a time when the political crisis rocking Rivers State continues to deepen.
Wike’s dinner with the lawmakers followed his earlier visit to Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, where he met with some of his political allies on Sunday.
The UK meeting was disclosed by the minister’s media aide, Lere Olayinka, via a post on Facebook. According to Olayinka, the lawmakers are currently in the UK for a Legislative Capacity Building programme and were hosted by Wike shortly after he arrived from Nigeria.
“Yesterday, the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, hosted Rivers State House of Assembly members who are in the United Kingdom for Legislative Capacity Building, to a dinner.
Wike left Nigeria on Sunday night after visiting his political friends and associates in Port Harcourt, Rivers State,” Olayinka wrote.
The lawmakers in question had been suspended by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu following the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State.
Their suspension was linked to growing security concerns and political instability, which also led to the six-month suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
The conflict, rooted in a fierce power struggle between Wike and Governor Fubara, has shaken the state’s political structure to its core.
In a bid to restore order, the Supreme Court later intervened by reinstating the suspended lawmakers and directing Governor Fubara to present the 2024 budget before the Assembly led by Speaker Martins Amaewhule.
However, attempts to comply with the court’s directive were frustrated when the lawmakers barred the governor from gaining access to the Assembly complex.
While the UK dinner was described as a social event connected to the lawmakers' training programme, its political undertones have not gone unnoticed.
The meeting has raised eyebrows and reignited speculation that Wike may be working to consolidate his influence over the Assembly and assert control over political developments in Rivers State, despite now holding a federal ministerial role.
With no end in sight to the crisis, the dinner in the UK is seen as yet another significant move in the ongoing power play that continues to shape the political future of Rivers State.