The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State has said it is not disturbed by speculation that Governor Siminalayi Fubara may be planning to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Reacting to the reports, the State Chairman of the PDP, Robinson Ewor, described the governor’s political choices as personal, stressing that Fubara has the right to pursue any interest he considers legitimate.
“Whatever decision the governor takes is personal,” Ewor said. He added that the governor was elected by Rivers people to serve their overall interest and not for partisan loyalty alone.
It would be recalled that during the six-month emergency rule imposed on Rivers State from March 18 to September 18, one of the conditions of the peace deal Fubara allegedly signed in June was that he should defect to the APC.
Ewor, however, dismissed knowledge of such an arrangement. “I am not aware of such a plan, nor has the governor informed me of his intention to leave the party,” he noted.
Speculation grew stronger after Fubara was spotted on Monday with the chairman of the APC Governors’ Forum and Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, as he accompanied him to President Bola Tinubu’s office.
Observers also noted that in his statewide broadcast of September 18, when he resumed duties after the lifting of emergency rule, Fubara failed to acknowledge the role of the PDP in challenging the emergency declaration.
It will be recalled that at least 11 PDP governors had gone to court to challenge the Federal Government’s decision, while several prominent Nigerians also condemned the emergency rule in Rivers, describing it as unconstitutional.
