Protesting youths have dismantled a statue of Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, in the Obi Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.
Disputes over the tenure of local government chairmen are believed to have sparked the demonstration.
This incident starkly underlines the deep-rooted and intense conflict between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and Wike, a feud that began just three months after Fubara succeeded Wike as governor of Rivers State.
Although tensions had cooled for a while, the disagreement over the local government chairmen’s tenure has reignited their feud.
VIDEO: Wike's Statue Destroyed In Obi Akpor LG Secretariat pic.twitter.com/qwuFxc795T
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The governor instructed the chairmen, supported by Wike, to leave office due to their expired terms.
However, they refused, citing that the pro-Wike faction in the Rivers House of Assembly had extended their terms by six months because the Fubara government failed to conduct Local Government elections.
In a statewide broadcast on Tuesday, Governor Fubara ordered all 23 LGA chairmen to hand over their positions to the Heads of Administration in their respective councils.
In response to this directive, a significant number of youths, in a show of unity and strength, gathered at LGA secretariats across the state.
In Obi Akpor, where Wike served two terms as chairman, some youths vandalised a statue erected in his honour.
One protester shouted, “No more Wike,” as the group collectively destroyed the object. One person picked up a hat that had fallen during the chaos and threw it to the ground.
This incident occurred amid widespread protests happening throughout Rivers.
