Fubara Vs Wike row: Ijaw group threatens resurgence of militancy in Niger Delta

Although several stakeholders have urged both sides to lay down their swords and embrace peace, the power battle between Barrister Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory, and Sim Fubara, his estranged political godson and governor of Rivers State, is progressively taking on a different form.

A group of Ijaw people, operating under the name Ijaw Renaissance Force (IRF), has recently promised to resurrect insurgency in the oil-rich Niger Delta in the event that Governor Sim is removed unlawfully through a stage-managed judicial removal or an illegal impeachment.

The statement said, in part, that “We, the Ijaw Renaissance Force, a coalition of over 100 ethnic nationalities and youth groups operating in Rivers and Bayelsa, have watched with grave concern, the ongoing power struggle between Governor Sim Fubara of Rivers State and Barr Nyesom Wike, the former governor of Rivers State and now minister of the Federal Capital Territory.”

The group’s spokesperson, Sir White Kalio, and coordinator, Wisdom Oniekpar Ikuli, also signed the statement. It went on to criticize the role played by various state and non-state players in exacerbating the situation by attempting to remove Fubara illegally.

We have also seen with bated breath attempts by certain non-state actors and elected politicians to orchestrate the forcible removal of a legitimately elected Governor Fubara from office through the back door without a valid basis.

The group issued a dire warning to troublemakers about the serious consequences of their activities before calling a close.

“Therefore, we categorically declare that any effort at a difficult impeachment or judicially staged removal of Governor Sim Fubara from office would result in a resumption of the oil war conflict in Rivers State.”