Wike – Fubara Battle for Power Supremacy: How it’s Ending between Godfathers and Godsons in Nigeria Politics…. -By Usman Yanmaza

The battle and intuitive loggerheads between the former Governor of Rivers state and current FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and his successor the sitting Governor, H.E Siminalayi Fubara is taking oars into yet another dimension as the political crises recently turned different after the moved by the 27 lawmakers loyal to Wike plotted an impeachment proceeding against Governor Fubara, so also the demolition of Rivers State House of Assembly complex and the subsequent drawstabed by the Speaker Rivers State House of Assembly (ally to Governor Fubara) were he declared the seats of 27 members loyal to Wike as vacant after they camped to APC.

Sim Fubara (as he rightly be called was Wike’s former Accountant General in the rich oil state) have been singlehandedly picked by Wike to be his successor eventhough some influential figures have nursed for the seat. Amidst these bombastic political war of attrition, yet Governor Fubara have his nervous audacity and presented his 2024 budget proposal to miniature of 5 members headed by the Speaker Rt.Hon. Ehie Edison inside the chamber in gov’t house.

The situation and new trend raised a very strange constitutional question and garnered the attention of many observers whom the players involved in the Rivers state sought for the haste intervention from President Bola Tinubu. President have partially intervened by penciling down some hard-earned agreement between the two whom mostly favour Wike. The moved repulsively turn down by the Elders of Niger Delta pan socio – cultural groups likes of Ijaw congrese, and its leader Godwin Clark.

Recalled on the column i wrote on 18th January 2023 tittled “Wike and Life after Power”, i said “Your Excellency, you have only four months to round off your second tenure and quit office as Governor of Rivers State. Your influence will start phasing away after the governorship election in March, next year (2024) it’s then the “reality” of power transition will begin to dawn on you. Your erstwhile appointees will forget about you immediately. Your contractors will leave you, your vocal voice will cease down in the public and media spaces, your Influence in state and national affairs will diminishes concurrently. The number of your political associates will decrease drastically. All the attention will be focused on the new Governor of Rivers State. Your name soon grows decrepit in the ears of the citizens the cacophony of your verbiage once reverberated. Everything about you will become old-fashioned. Your clangorous diatribes will fall in diminuendo”.

The Rivers State political environment gets charged as the rivalry between former Governor of the state, Nyesom Wike and his estranged godson, Siminalayi Fubara intensified where their differences is hecking the state into a capital of anarchy from capital of Port Harcourt. Wike is accusing Governor Fubara for jettisoning the political structures in the state which in an instance of it put him into power, while Governor Fubara is maintaining his stance as an elected governor in power.

The caricature led to set the State House of Assembly on fire, where the 27 lawmakers loyal to Wike were on the process of impeaching Governor Fubara. Wike latter accused Fubara for orchestrating the burning outbreak in order to scuttle chances and save his ass from impeachment plot raised against him. While Fubara denied the allegation and maintained that he have done nothing out of the ambit of laws.

On the column i wrote, i also emphasized that “Dear Gov.Wike, may you get over the defeat hangover that has kept you in the cold, making you bleat as if an inheritance of yours or destiny has been tampered with. What you are playing is no longer politics. You are becoming an aimless villain. Power, they say, is transient. You will understand all you have been doing once you pull off the governorship garb adorning your body now by election period. Even the young man Hon.Sim Fubara you work towards making Governor will disappoint you once he has assumed office as your kind of person will like to remain in power by surrogacy. It doesn’t work out in most cases. You will soon be alone. The people you are hounding today for no social reason will use you like a plaything should they succeed in 2023. You may regret taking the route you are taking now with arrogance.”.

Fubara is showing Wike that he is a former Governor, the power changed hands, subconsciously, Wike never see this coming and never thought from any angle. But if we would look carefully at the reality of life, being loyalist doesn’t in any way show you’ll take one for granted. I always knew that two of them would fall since no two people are the same. The objectives of two people might be the same, but how they would implement will never be the same. Those two people aren’t the same in appearance and ideology, while Fubara is calm, peaceful and soft, Wike is exact the opposite. Fubara is showing Wike that calmness is not in any way weakness and wanting peace doesn’t mean you are weak.

I neither care about Fubara nor Wike, my care is maintaining peace in the sovereign state of Rivers, because none of them are struggling for the welfare of the people but for their personal and primordial interests, at end of it, people will bear the brunt since when two elephants are fighting, guess what? It’s grass that suffer. Owing to the twist and turns of events, it’s paramount to note that the action of those two political gladiators wouldn’t augur well for the state, it will not in any case represent the aspirations of the people in the state.

However, I concluded my findings that over the years such kind fights between incumbent governors (Godsons) and former Governors (Godfathers) always favoured the incumbents.

Here are the top list of Godfathers who fought supremacy battle with their Godsons ;

The mêlée between Wike and Fubara was not the first in the history of political godfatherism in Nigeria. A similar fight between Peter Obi and Willie Obiano in Anambra State also occurred. In 2013 the then outgoing governor Peter Obi sought out his friend Obiano, a banker from Fidelity bank, to take over from him. They were said to be the best friends right from secondary school, and Obi apparently believed that Obiano would follow his footsteps as governor. He campaigned vigorously for him and he won. But as soon as the euphoria of Obiano/APGA victory died down and the new governor settled down at Government House in Awka, cracks began to appear bitter in their relationship. They began to trade accusations and counter accusations. And as the crisis deepened, at the end Obiano won the battle after he chased out obi from APGA to PDP.

In Osun State, former Minister of Interior Rauf Aregbesola was visibly elated at the swearing-in of his successor, Gboyega Oyetola who was his Chief of Staff during his time as governor. He also played a significant role when the battle shifted to the law courts up to the Supreme Court. However, no sooner had Oyetola settled down in office then the relationship turned sour. In no time Oyetola been completely in charge of the political structure in the state.

A similar scenario played out in Oyo State as the then “strongman of Ibadan politics” Late. Adedibu took on his godson Governor Rashid Ladoja over allocation of money and political appointments, just as the late major power broker in Kwara State, Dr. Olusola Saraki squared up against his godson, the late Governor Lawal Mohammed.

In Enugu State, Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani rode on the political horseback of Chief Jim Nwobodo, who was the governor of the old Anambra State in the Second Republic from 1979 to 1983, Chimaroke become governor in 1999. Unfortunately, the godfather-godson relationship did not last for a long time. No sooner had the governor been sworn in than they fell out. Chimaroke Nnamani also suffered defeat as he done, prior to the 2007 general election, Barr. Sullivan Chime who was the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Enugu State under Chimaroke, was not considered by political observers as among the possible successors to the leader of the Ebeano political dynasty, Dr Chimaroke Nnamani. However, Nnamani shocked all the political actors as he settled for Chime who he considered to be very quiet. However, as soon as Chime emerged governor after the election, his first decision was to ban the Ebeano group. A battle between political father and son ensued, such that it was difficult for Nnamani to access the state even as a serving Senator. His bid to return to the senate in 2011 was also scuttled by Chime who threw up Senator Gilbert Nnaji. The no love lost situation continued until Chime left office in 2015. Chime succeeded in installing Rt. Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi as his successor in 2015.

In Benue State, the rift between George Akume and Gabriel Suswan bitterly got sour as the political battle keep playing between the two. Suswan completed his 8 years tenure without having good time with his Godfather Akume. Likewise after Akume installed Samuel Ortom in 2015, the agog began when the Ortom reshuffled his cabinet and removed members of Akume’s camp. The governor retained four commissioners and seven advisers who were not affiliated with his predecessor Akume. After 48 hours of sacking the commissioners loyal to Akume, he fired the Executive Chairman of Benue Internal Revenue Service (BIRS) and his Urban Development Board counterpart who were all close associates of Akume. The crack in their relationship widened when the Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Terkimbi Ikyange, said to be loyal to Akume, was impeached.

In Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole now a senator, literally made life hellish for the then Deputy Governor of the state for daring to eye the governorship seat. His stamp of authority paved the way for Godwin Obaseki his then Chairman of Edo State Economic Team to emerge as governor. But Obaseki and Oshiomhole soon turned to political enemies, resulting in the former’s exit from the All Progressives Congress (APC). To date, Obaseki and Oshiomhole have yet to bury the hatchet. While Oshiomhole remains relevant only in Edo North, Obaseki controls the political structure of the state.

Also in Abia, Theodore Orji, whom former Abia State governor Orji Kalu catapulted and won the governorship of the state while in prison, At the time of electioneering campaign, Orji was at the Kirikiri Maximum Prisons in Lagos awaiting trial for multiple count charges of alleged money laundering, fraud and conspiracy. Orji won the election on the platform of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), the party his then godfather, Orji Uzor Kalu was the presidential candidate. Theodore Orji served as Chief of Staff to Kalu, and later succeeded him. However, like most political relationships, it did not last long before the two got into a bitter rivalry. For 16 years, Theodore Orji’s political family held on until it was recently swept away by the Obidient tsunami. Kalu on the other side has been trying to make a comeback in the state, however, he has been restrained to Abia North.

In the buildup to the 2015 election, Godswill Akpabio the then-governor of Akwa-Ibom state single-handedly picked Emmanuel Udom as his successor in the state. Like most political relationships, it did not last long, even though the two had stated that they would avoid banana peel which could cause a fight. One year later, the relationship between the two had deteriorated to the point that Akpabio had to leave the party and join the APC. Udom won his re-election in 2019 and successfully transferred power to his preferred successor in 2023. While Akpabio continued to enjoy national positions, as Minister and Senate President, however, he has not been able to regain control of the state.

In Kano, between 1999 to 2015 Engr. Rabiu Kwankwaso and Dr. Umar Ganduje were almost inseparable. In 2003, Ganduje was deputy to Kwankwaso, and when they lost the election, Kwankwaso was appointed the Minister of Defence by Obasanjo, Ganduje followed him to Abuja as SA. When Kwankwaso made a comeback in 2011, Ganduje was again the deputy. Therefore, it came as no surprise in 2015 when Ganduje got the ticket of the APC. However, the fight between the two started immediately after the election. For years, the two have been engaging in a free-for-all fracas over the control of the political structure of the state. In the course of the struggle, the former Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido, who is believed to be loyal to Kwankwaso lost his throne. And Kwankwaso was forced to leave the APC for his former ally.
Kwankwaso and his followers have regained control of the political structure in the state after winning the 2023 election.

During the APC tsunami of 2015, then-Governor Aliyu Wamakko backed Aminu Tambuwal as the Governor of Sokoto State. Wamakko, who had earlier fought against Attahiru Bafarawa for the political structure of the state, had already set his sights on becoming the de facto godfather of the state. However, Tambuwal a former Speaker of the House of Representatives had other things in mind. After a bit of battle, the former Speaker moved back to the PDP. During the 2019 election, Tambuwal won the election by a slim margin to serve a second term. However, his party the PDP lost the governorship election in 2023, allowing Wamakko to retain control of the state.

In 2014 Akinwunmi Ambode got the nod of the godfather of Lagos politics Bola Tinubu to contest the 2015 governorship election. As of 2015, Tinubu had expanded his political tentacle to the whole of South-west and national politics. For about three years everything seemed perfect between Tinubu and his godson. However, weeks before the primary election, the story changed for Ambode. His feeble attempt to fight back was overwhelmed by the superstructure in Lagos. Ambode quietly exited the political stage after losing the primaries to Babajide Sanwo-Olu. The case of Lagos State presented a rare instance of when a godfather defeated an incumbent governor.

Former Governor Liyel Imoke backed Ben Ayade during the primary election of 2014 against other governorship aspirants in the PDP. Ayade, with the support of Imoke became the governor of Cross Rivers State. However, in a similar twist, Ayade made efforts to expand his influence within the party and both fell out. After years of tussle, Ayade left the PDP and joined the APC.

James Ibori, an ex-convict, held control of the political structure of the state since 1999. His grip on the state was stopped by a godson, Ifeanyi Okowa, after a long battle. At the primary election in May 2022, Ibori backed David Edevbie while Okowa supported Sheriff Oborevwori, the then speaker of the Delta House of Assembly. In the end, Okowa won after he installed his man as his successor after scuttling the candidate of his former boss.

The problem of godfatherism in Nigeria’s political space is a chronic one and has consequently slowed down the country’s democratic progression. The idea of democracy is hinged on the free will of the people in electing their political leaders, and where such “free will” is manipulated through the influence of political juggernauts, the country is further pulled away from the attainment of best democratic practice.

Sadly, most politicians see political godfathers as the most convenient means of winning elections. However, experience has shown that the patronage of political godfathers has grave consequences, not only for the politician, but also for the public and the stability of the country itself.

Governor Fubara, who erstwhile was the Accountant General of the state during Wike’s tenure, was not an active player in Rivers politics. He won the PDP primary election and eventually became the governor of the state through Wike’s political sagacity and influence. Given previous occurrences, people like me knew that the ‘father and son’ relationship between the duo wouldn’t last. However, what was surprising was the suddenness of the rancor between them barely six months of Fubara’s assumption of office as governor.

Wike is afraid of loosing his political relevance in the state, because once he loses his base as a politician, he has lost his relevance politically, emphasised the importance of holding his base to maintain his political relevance.

Normally, it’s like that arrangement, if godfather puts godson into power, and they have some agreements on what they will be doing for each other when the godson gets into power, the moment the godson realises that what the godfather has demanded something that is either not realistic and that he might not be able to perform in office if he keeps to the agreements, he may want to go the other way different from that of the godfather. That is where issues usually start.

But on the positive note, Godfatherism it should be about mentoring, it should be about counselling, it should be about exposing the godsons to the rudiments of democracy or politicking. But in most cases, it goes beyond that. Therefore, the line between positive and negative godfatherism is so thin that we don’t always see the positive side of it and the negative side of godfatherism are always negative for democracy.

It is destructive to encourage blatant godfatherism in any constitutional democracy. Sadly, several governors have made such attempts to transform themselves into godfathers, and in many cases have failed. The reason is simple, power is only exercised on behalf of the state and such powers reside in the office and not necessarily the individuals, hence the maxim when you leave power, power leaves you.

So, when the so-called godsons get into office, they quickly realise that the state and the office they occupy confers them with executive powers without a second level approval. This reality liberates them from their godfathers and soon makes them protagonists.

Usman Yanmaza writes from Bauchi…..