Eaglepoint: Rivers- the tale of the surrogate who bruised the ego of the godfather

Let no one mince words about this fact: the emerging godfather of Rivers politics, Nyesom Wike made Siminalayi Fubara a Governor and to all intent and purpose, the man, Wike, decidedly chose Fubara above other lists of ‘ puppet ‘ candidates because the godfather in him saw in Siminalayi, a pliable , soft, easy going godson and political place-holder. Let us not lie to ourselves , the Nyesom Wike that governed Rivers for eight years held the state by the jugular and brooked no opposition. Before our very eyes, he showed his predecessor , Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi the fact that as a sitting Governor , he owned Rivers and Rivers is his forte and no one dared him in his Rivers.We couldn’t have forgotten in a hurry how under President Goodluck Jonathan, Rotimi Amaechi as Rivers Governor had his Governorship and gubernatorial authority questioned by AIG Mbu- no doubt a proxy war then. But in Nyesom Wike’s Rivers there was none of such confrontation against his government ; he silenced internal and external aggression, bestriding Rivers like a colossus whose words was Yes and Amen. He doesn’t shy from a fight and you always know where he stands when it comes to showcasing the thunderstorm of aggression. Atiku Abubakar of the PDP fame won’t dare forget in a hurry the role Nyesom Wike played, without hiding behind a finger, in making sure the serial ambition of the Turaki Adamawa to become President of Nigeria in 2023 hit brick wall. One thing you can’t take away from Wike is that he throws his all into any fight that demands his attention.

Siminalayi Fubara, the now suspended Governor of Rivers State in the eyes of his former benefactor is the true reflection of a treacherous surrogate. How do I mean? The political godfather found him as a good item of political surrogacy , who will govern Rivers as it is done between ‘ puppet and marionette’ . So as an outgoing governor , he put his election war chest in support of the Fubara candidacy. It will be recalled that at that time not even the Ijaws fantasized with the Wike /Fubara political romance. This was not necessarily because the latter was not an appealing candidate but simply because it was obvious the Ijaws never wanted a puppet Governor. They wanted a Governor who will brake all links with Governor Wike who had politically balled the state in a firm grip, tucked in his pouch. When a godfather goes to all that length to make you a Governor , he is not doing you any favour. Rather he is only turning you to his yeo man who will be a surrogate in all ramifications. It reminds one of the concept of ‘thingification’ in which a human becomes a thing that has no life or thought of its own. We can never tell if there was a signed document that the Governor will do all the bidding of his benefactor but it was obvious the benefactor never wanted his surrogate to take any decision on Rivers without the benefactor’s say so. This is one of the dangers of godfatherism in Nigerian politics. The godfather often forgets the saying that ‘ when you give the gods a goat, even the rope around the neck of the goat becomes a bonus for the gods.’ Democracy underpins the fact that the godfather is at liberty to provide a candidate but the people , the voting masses turn the godfather’s candidate to an elected representative of the people no matter the avowal of the godfather .

Governor Siminalayi Fubara obviously stooped to his godfather and won the gubernatorial race, but curiously, buying into the democratic social- contract disconnected the man from the leach of the godfather. That is one treachery the ‘ bloody eyed gods of godfatherism in Nigeria don’t tolerate. We have not forgotten in a hurry ‘ the Okija shrine dalliance between one time Anambra state Governor and his godfather’. In that case similarly, it was a clash of the Titans as godfathers never forgive an act of treachery.

Unfortunately for the godfathers, Democracy takes over after their surrogates have been elected and one expects that the godfathers should cut their godsons some slacks.

While one does not make effort to apportion blame here; it is the type of politics played in this clime , a brand of politics in which one single individual playing roughneck politics will assume that the whole state owes him and he or she can decide the fate of the masses. We have not forgotten in a hurry the ‘ Amala school of politics ‘ in Ibadan of the era of the sage political godfather , Baba Adedibu of blessed memory. In the unique display of the anger of the godfather, and possibly while dipping his fingers into hot Amala and ewedu, a sitting Oyo State Governor was impeached on Baba’s say so because the surrogate godson bruised the benefactor’s ego and must be taught a lesson .

In such development, the surrogate Governor is always coerced to play ball as the godfather who had his script well structured often has the State assembly in his pocket to compel the Governor to toe the part of ‘ agreement’.

In Rivers politics of Wike and Fubara, the frosty relationship began after swearing in as it was obvious by his attitude as a typical Ijaw man that Sim was not going to play lackey politics. Such action tilting towards bruising the ego of former Governor Wike is what has now blown out of proportion today. Under the right climate, the power of the state is held in place to govern according to social democratic contracts and not based on the whims and caprices of a former governor or money bag who sponsors candidates so as to gain control over the till. No one single person is held accountable for the running of the state except the elected Governor and no matter the effort of the godfather for putting in place the Governor or the President, the best thing is to allow the surrogate govern while the godfather takes the glory for nominating a brilliant candidate to light up the candle of development. That is where the issue of virtue and value in governance step in: in Ekiti State, it is obvious that without the support of ex Governor Kayode Fayemi, the incumbent Governor would have had a difficult time becoming the Governor. The former nominated his best gubernatorial choice and having won election had given him the free space to exhibit his brilliant Governance potential, what we have is a win- win for both Fayemi and Oyebanji. But those who see raw power as a means to an end do not reason from such intellectual trajectory and the outcome is the fracas that has just evolved in the Rivers political horizon.

How the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory expected Siminalayi Fubara, a full blooded Ijaw man to become a governor as a puppet beats everyone who understands the political equation of Rivers. Obviously , the godfather of Rivers made an error of judgement with his choice of surrogate and will have to live with the result of his choices.

One unsolved piece of the puzzle though is, why he would be in control of Abuja as a super minister in the opposition party that has given him a special place in their federal government and he will still want to have the whole of Rivers politics. in his pocket . This is the stuff of the folklore story where a hunter who has elephant as his prey sadly remains fixated on sharing the hide of a grasshopper. With this tragedy happening in Rivers , Democracy has been suspended for the now, a better consolation for the godfather if the impeachment of his treacherous godson appears impossible for the now. The danger thereof is that the whole of Nigeria will have the angst of the Ijaw nation to contend with. How prepared is a wobbling economy to combat oil facility sabotage?

Steve Remume Ovirih

Steve Remume Ovirih is a prolific writer and digital creator known for his innovative storytelling and creative approach to digital media. His works span across various genres, captivating audiences with his unique narrative style and engaging content.

Steve can be reached at steveovirih106@gmail.com