Sara-Igbe: Fubara Needs Support To Succeed

A member of the Rivers Elders Forum, Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe, in this interview, speaks on the lingering political crisis in the state and how it can be resolved, ANAYO EZUGWU reports

What is your take on recent political developments in Rivers State, particularly the violence that took place after the recent local government elections?

What we need is mutual understanding, a peaceful disposition in the face of all the provocations. I thank God also for the peaceful election, which exposed Nyesom Wike and his people.

To start with, the 1999 Constitution (as amended) is very clear in section 215 (4) that the governor of a state has the power to direct the commissioner of police to protect lives and property but in the case of Rivers State the commissioner refused to take directives from the governor. Rather, he was taking directives from outside the government.

The governor is the chief executive officer of the state, and there is no other directive other than the constitutional directive, but the commissioner of police refused to take instructions or directives from the governor. The governor was not provoked; he maintained his calm.

So, I thank God for his disposition and also the bold step he took in conducting the elections. At least everybody in this country will now see that the entire state is behind the governor.

The people of the Niger Delta, the Ijaw nation are also behind him. I thank the governor for the bold step and I thank the likes of Pa Edwin Clark, who took it upon himself as a leader of Southern Nigeria and South-South, particularly the Ijaw nation, to ensure that justice is maintained and the right thing is done in Rivers State. Also, I thank Chief Ada George and the Elders Forum for standing behind the governor.

What is happening in Rivers State is uncalled for. The constitution is very clear; there cannot be two governors in the state. There should be only one governor.

When a governor has served out his tenure, he should allow the incumbent governor, who is empowered by the law to govern the state.

In the case of Rivers State, the former governor still thinks that he is the de facto governor of the state because he supported a particular candidate to become governor.

That is the beginning of the crisis but the governor, up till today, is still disposed to making peace. He wants peace. He wants everybody to come together and build Rivers State.

It is unprecedented. He is not saying, because you have done this I am not going to forgive you. He has forgiven everybody and he is calling everybody to come together to build Rivers State. The issue of burning the local government secretariats and shooting is uncalled for.

What did you come to this world with? We came into this world with nothing and we shall leave with nothing. What are we looking for You had the opportunity to govern. You have governed, let the other man govern and let the people of Rivers State have peace and enjoy themselves. But the Lord has disgraced them.

The Lord has humbled them. So, I will appeal to Wike to realise that he cannot fight God. He cannot make himself God. Any time you go against God he will humiliate you. The election of Rivers State has proved that the governor is now in charge.

The so-called structures have been dead and buried. You grabbed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), you grabbed the All Progressives Congress (APC), one man in APC and PDP, so that the governor will not have a platform to contest. Another window opened and he proved to everybody that those structures were dead. Let us accept it the way it is and bring peace to Rivers State. Let everybody come together and work with the governor.

What do you make of the role of the police; do you think the police took side through their actions in some of these crises?

The constitution in section 215 (4) says the governor will give directives to the commissioner of police to maintain law and order. But in this case, the police refused to take instructions from the governor and were rather taking side with Wike, which is unconstitutional. They were also biased and it was so obvious.

If you look at the crisis, it was like a preplanned event. s soon as the police left, some people came in and started burning buildings, causing problems. The police have a constitutional role to maintain law and order. They were to maintain peace, not to take side but in the case of Rivers State it was obvious to everybody that they were partial.

The leadership of Nigeria Delta did not rest until the National Security Adviser (NSA) gave directives to the IGP before he withdrew tactical support for the other group. How can people be destroying things and the police are there? They folded their hands and did nothing. The police should not fold their hands and watch people commit crimes. People were shooting guns, but the police, empowered by law to arrest those people did nothing.

Nobody has been arrested, nothing has happened because they are not supporting the governor but supporting somebody outside the government. It is not fair. There are other elections across the country and there was nothing like that, why is Rivers State different? If I had my way, the Inspector General of Police should be sanctioned.

War will not help us. What will develop Rivers State is peace. We have oil; everything is around us, yet we are not developing. Poverty is all over the place

In the spirit of moving forward and restoring peace in the state; what are lessons that have been learnt and what is your advice to the players in Rivers State at the moment?

The lesson learnt is humility. Everybody should be humble. Thou shall not boast of tomorrow. Somebody boasted he would do this, he would do that, he would show this, he would show that and at the end of the day, all the boasting became nullity. The Bible is against boasting. You don’t need to boast about tomorrow.

Tomorrow has its course. Tomorrow has proved that boasting is nothing. All the boasting has amounted to nothing. Can’t you learn from that and come to make peace and surrender? The former governor has been defeated. People thought he was invisible, but now he is visible. He was mighty but now he is nobody.

I don’t see how President Bola Tinubu can still keep him. If Tinubu is hoping to get Rivers State through Wike, it is most unfortunate, he can’t get that. It has been proven that he cannot even win his ward. So, we should not boast about tomorrow. We should humble ourselves before God and man.

Let us try to do what is right; play your role as a masquerade, and when you have played your role you leave for others to also play their roles. You shouldn’t be causing confusion or shooting guns because you have power or because you are a minister or because you have money.

These are the things that will go as life is vanity upon vanity. Solomon said: “Everything is vanity” We will all pass through this world and go. Great men came and left. Alexander the Great and others have gone. We will also go. So, why are we killing ourselves over nothing? You were a governor for eight years and you are gone.

Someone else is here, allow him to govern. Rivers people can judge him. If he performs well, if he doesn’t perform well, they will score him. It is not to confuse everywhere. So, I will appeal to Wike and his team, please we are one Rivers people, let’s work together. Let us make peace in Rivers State, so that the state can grow.

In order to maintain the peace agreement; what needs to be done, who are the people that should be involved and what discussions need to be heard, and knowing that Wike seems to be losing out in this battle, what is the future for him in Rivers State?

There is no victor, there is no vanquish. The governor is willing to accommodate everybody. He wants everybody to come together. The elders of Rivers State are ready to make peace for the two of them if Wike will submit himself. We don’t need any war.

War will not help us. What will develop Rivers State is peace. Rivers State was at par with Lagos State, but Lagos has gone far ahead of us. So, we must concentrate to see how we can build our economy.

We have oil, everything is around us, yet we are not developing. Poverty is all over the place. Let us make peace, and advise the former governor in any way he feels he can. We need peace. If Wike says he wants to fight, he will lose. What does he have? We have seen his strength. Nigerians have seen his strength.

He has no strength. He has nobody behind him, only the thugs are working with him and they will fade away. So, my advice to him is to make peace. Fubara is the governor of Rivers State. The people of Rivers State are supporting him, Niger Delta people are supporting him, Nigerians are supporting him and the Ijaw nation is behind him. I want to tell you something; the Ijaws are in 12 local government areas.

They have the population. They allowed Ikwerre to govern. When he behaves like this, he is only giving the Ikwerres a bad name, which is not fair. The attitude of Wike and others is making people blame Graham Douglas for the good thing he did by allowing others to rule. Let us come back as one family and ensure that peace reigns. Let us develop Rivers State.

The local government elections have come and gone, and if you don’t like it, go to court. The Chief Justice has already set up a committee to look into it. But the law is very clear, if you didn’t contest an election, you cannot challenge the election. Local Government election is under the state High Court; it is not under the Federal High Court.

We don’t know what the Federal High Court is doing with local government election. The Electoral Act is very clear; you cannot stop an election. No court has the right to stop an election. Even section 205 is very clear that if a governor gives a directive to the police, no court has the right to interfere or to investigate it, which is the power of the governor.

Let everyone who doesn’t understand the rules go to the constitution and the Electoral Act. The governor conducted the election and it was accepted by Rivers people. They came out in their numbers and voted. Democracy is the government of the people by the people and for the people. The people have spoken, let us obey it. Let there be peace, come together as one family, so that we can move on.