.’Rumours of my sickness politically motivated’
FAVOUR ISHEMBER, Abuja
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Barr Nyesom Wike, has declared that peace has been fully restored to Rivers State following months of political turmoil.
Wike, who spoke during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today and monitored by our correspondent on Thursday, said Governor Siminalayi Fubara is set to return to the state after a six-month emergency rule imposed by President Bola Tinubu.
Recall that the emergency rule was imposed in March due to a protracted political crisis between Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Wike.
The crisis led to the suspension of Fubara, his Deputy Prof. Ngozi Odu, and the Rivers State House of Assembly. During this period, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd) was appointed sole administrator of the state and bowed out on Wednesday after President Bola Tinubu ended the emergency rule.
But speaking on the development, Wike said that he spoke with Governor Fubara on Wednesday, and expressed his readiness to return to Rivers State.
“As I speak to you, as of yesterday, I spoke to the Governor (Fubara). I told him I was leaving that night to come back, and he told me he was leaving this morning,” Wike told Channels Television’s Politics Today.
With this development, Wike believes peace has returned to the state, citing the Assembly’s actions as a positive step towards setting the tone for peace and progress.
Wike emphasized the importance of moving forward in the interest of the state, stating, “By the grace of God, peace has returned. And look at what the Assembly did today to set the tone — you can see peace; you can see we are prepared, for the interest of the state. Let’s move forward.”
Reacting to reports that he was sick, Barr Wike, who recently returned from an overseas trip, dismissed such rumours as false, stressing that they were politically motivated.
He explained that he took a deserved break from his busy schedule, emphasizing the need to be healthy to work.
According to him, “It’s unfortunate to hear that they said I was sick, they said you have a heart attack. God will continue to help them to have a heart attack”.
“Each time I travel, I go with files, I travel with C-of-Os, to make sure that work is not being delayed. But this time around, I said, whatever it is, I must travel, and I must travel without any file, so if the whole place will crumble, let it crumble because one has to be alive before one can satisfy other people.
“You know this job we are doing, people are waiting for you, the day you drop, they will announce another person. So, you must make sure while you are working, you also take time out and relax, so I said, let me travel.
“Before I knew it, I heard that they said they were sick, and I heard they said they had a heart attack. God will continue to help them to have a heart attack. It is my prayer that I will sign their condolences. It is my prayer, very soon, I will write a letter, we are sorry, we lost him. But take heart; it is God that gives, and it’s God that has taken.
“You know, this country we are in, we play politics with everything. How can somebody sit down and write all sorts of things? Where the person saw me, I don’t know. The hospital where he saw me, I do not know. And yet, we are all happy reading it on social media,” the Minister said.
He also decried what he called the undue criticism of President Tinubu on social media, condemning a recent instance where a popular activist referred to the President as a criminal.
Wike argued that such unguarded utterances were uncalled for, noting that Nigerians are fortunate to have a President who believes in the rule of law.
He drew a parallel with the United States, stating that no matter how much Americans criticize their leaders, they would never publicly label a president a criminal.
“This is a country where somebody will go on social media to say Mr. President is a criminal and nothing will happen. Anybody can wake up in the morning and say all kinds of things, and nothing will happen”, he added.
Regarding a planned demonstration by FCT resident doctors over claims that the FCTA was prioritizing road construction over healthcare, the Minister assured them that their concerns, including allowances and the employment of health officers, were being addressed.
Wike, who also frowned at reports of purported plans by the workers to disrupt the project flag-off ceremony by staging a protest, cautioned against using the civil service for political purposes, stating that protest is a democratic right, but it will not stop decisions in the best interest of the administration.
He said, “If you want to enter political party A, you are free to enter and face me when the time comes, but don’t use the civil service to play politics”.
He added, “The people in health said we have not paid their allowances. We lost our Head of Service. We’ve just appointed an Acting Head of Service. I said okay, go and check how much they are talking about.
“They said, we’ve not employed doctors. I said, Chairman, Civil Service Commission, go and employ them. I will not be a doctor. Go and employ them. They are now talking about improving the health facilities. The 2025 capital budget for health alone is about N25 billion. Ask them, when did we get our budget? We got our budget in July from the National Assembly”.
Speaking on efforts to improve street lighting in the FCT, he disclosed that the FCT Administration has devised new strategies, including four-year maintenance contracts with companies as well as the introduction of new technologies to prevent vandalism.
He warned officials against any acts of corruption that could derail President Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope” agenda in the FCT.
For a better society
Follow us across our platforms:
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/championnewsonline/
Facebook – https://web.facebook.com/championnewsonline
LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/champion-newspapers-limited/
https://x.com/championnewsng/
You can also like and comment on our YouTube videos.
https://youtu.be/QIBfD1tT80w?si=R4Qf3so2LxYu3GC2
