THE camp of Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr Nyesom Wike, is intensifying plans to impeach Governor of Rivers State, Mr Sim Fubara, next week.

Economy Post gathered from sources close to the FCT minister that neither the House Speaker Martins Amaewhule nor the minister is ready to give Governor Fubara any benefit of the doubt any more and is planning to mobilise members of the House of Assembly to commence the impeachment process next week.

Right now, the common belief in Mr Wike’s camp is that “Fubara is gone,” and there is a deliberate plan to block all pleadings and proddings from prominent Nigerians within and outside Rivers State to spare Governor Fubara.

One source informed Economy Post that the FCT minister is enraged by the support being given to Mr Fubara by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and is not ready to allow the governor participate in the 2027 general election “as anything can happen.”

Mr Wike believes that the APC should not ‘interfere’ in the matter “as the party stands to lose nothing if Fubara is impeached.” Wike’s camp believes that the Speaker, who will take over as governor, is also a member of the APC, noting that “the party is ungrateful for what we did for them in 2023,” a source noted.

Former Ekiti State Governor, Mr Ayo Fayose, a staunch supporter of Mr Wike, is aware of the mood of the camp. In his interview on Channels Television on Friday, Mr Wike summarised the situation by openly admitting that it would take the grace of God for Gov Fubara to escape impeachment.

“I’m not a prophet. So many prayers would be said to save Fubara. So many fasts and prayers would be the only thing that would save Fubara in this one. My prayer is that God will enter his mind, and the president will help calm him down,” Mr Fayose said.

Economy Post gathered that the only reason why Mr Fubara and his deputy, Prof Ngozi Odu, have not been impeached is that Speaker Martin Amaewhule isn’t sure of what will happen if he becomes governor in the event of Mr Fubara impeachment.

Here is the view of one of the legislators who spoke with Economy Post on the condition of anonymity.

“If the House impeaches the governor and his deputy, it will be interpreted that the Speaker is power-thirsty and has come up with excuses to impeach Fubara and take over power. There may be ripple effects in the peace enjoyed in Rivers State if that happens,” the source noted, stressing that Mr Wike was also conscious of this fact.

READ ALSO: Rivers Assembly Speaker: Fubara is a serious risk to democratic governance, a mistake

“Mr Fubara is from Opobo, which is in Rivers South-East Senatorial Zone. Speaker Martins Amaewhule is from Obio Akpor, which is in Rivers East. If you upset the zoning formula in the state through impeachment, we won’t have peace again. This is exactly what we are trying to avoid, but the governor doesn’t help matters,” the legislator said.

But the APC is a stumbling block to this plan hatched by the Wike’s camp. Governor Fubara is already enjoying the support of the APC governors and leaders who are bent on ensuring that he is not removed from office. A source said one of the governors had already been dispatched by the party to mediate into the crisis.

The general feeling in the APC is that a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) godfather in Rivers is working to unseat an APC governor, and many leaders of the party aren’t taking it lightly. They want President Bola Tinubu to remove Mr Wike.

Bad news for APC

The bad news for the APC, however, is that there is no plan from the president to remove Minister Wike. President Tinubu is planning to use Mr Wike to win elections for the APC in the state. Removing Mr Wike before the 2027 election will be premature and kibosh the president’s plans in 2027, a source noted.

Despite all the ‘noise’ about Mr Fubara being the leader of the party in Rivers State, the president believes that Mr Wike is more grounded in the state than Gov Fubara. He still does not trust that any other person but Wike can deliver the state for the APC.

“If Fubara is allowed to run the state, other parties may even win the state. But only Wike can ensure that APC wins the presidency,” one of the sources boasted.