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Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State is yet to be seen publicly nearly 24 hours after the Emergency rule imposed on the state was lifted.
President Bola Tinubu had declared State of Emergency in Rivers at the height of the rift between Fubara and loyalists of his estranged godfather, Nyesom Wike, who is the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Tinubu had suspended Fubara, Ngozi Odu, the Deputy Governor and members of the Rivers House of Assembly for six months.
He had appointed former Chief of Naval Staff, Vice-Admiral Ibot Ekwe Ibas as Sole Administrator of the State, a move which was heavily criticised.
But on Wednesday, the President said the emergency rule would elapse at midnight, adding that feelers from the state showed that there was no need for it to last a day longer.
He had ordered Fubara, his deputy and the lawmakers to resume duties.
However, while the House of Assembly members convened plenary, neither Fubara nor his deputy was seen in public.
The crowd which trooped to Government House, Port Harcourt, had dispersed hours after waiting for the governor’s return.
The crowd was made up of members of the Simplified Movement, the governor’s political support group.
Reportedly mobilised from across the 23 local government areas of the, they had planned to put up a show of solidarity for the governor.
Among those present were recently sacked local government chairmen, and former factional Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Victor Oko-Jumbo.
The supporters began arriving at the Government House as early as 6 a.m., equipped with traditional musical instruments, flutes, drums, and dance troupes.
The crowd took over Nnamdi Azikiwe Road, causing major gridlock.
But by mid-day, they started dispersing.
It is unclear why the governor had not returned to his position.
Amid the emergency rule, Fubara reportedly held a peace meeting with Wike and the lawmakers at the behest of Tinubu.
Quoting Presidential insiders, TheCable had reported that one of the key terms of the meertng was that Fubara must forgo any plans to seek a second term in 2027.
The online platform also said the governor was asked to allow Wike nominate all the local government chairpersons across the 23 LGAs of the state.
Although the election held last month, Fubara neither participated nor made comments about it
Attempts to reach Nelson Chukwudi, Fubara’s spokesman, over the governor’s whereabouts were unsuccessful as his telephone line was unreachable as of the time of filing this report.
