Mark Jacob, a former National Legal Adviser of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has stated that the posture of Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and suspended Governor of Rivers State, Sim Fubara, following their meeting with President Bola Tinubu may suggest reconciliation, but suspending elected government officials is antidemocratic.
Late Thursday, Tinubu met with Fubara, Wike, and suspended Rivers Assembly members at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
The meeting was held three months after Tinubu suspended Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and Rivers Assembly members during a severe political crisis in the oil-producing state.
After the meeting, Wike, Fubara, and the suspended legislators all smiled.
While speaking to journalists, Wike stated that they had overcome their issues and have decided to “work together with the governor, and the governor has also agreed to work with all of us”.
He went on to say, “We are members of the same political family; certainly, just like people, we all have problems, but you also have time to address your disagreements, which was eventually resolved today. We have come to announce to Mr. President that we have reached an agreement.”
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However, in an interview with Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Friday, the ex-PDP legal adviser argued that the reconciliation did not change the reality that an error occurred in Rivers state.
Jacob, citing recent defections to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), indicated that he would not be shocked if Fubara joined the party.
He stated, “So if they dangle a carrot to Siminalayi and tell him to come over to APC so that he can reclaim his seat, I will not be surprised if he agrees, because it is all about me.” What will I gain?
“The fact that they are shaking hands and smiling does not change the fact that an illegality has been forced on River State, which is an aberration and should never have happened in the first place.
“So, for me, it’s still drama, and we’ll see what happens in the coming days, but it’s a shame it happened at all.
“No democratically elected president should be able to hijack democracy. It should not occur in Nigeria, especially.”
