Rivers council president apologizes for calling Fubara ‘dumb and naive’

Less than a week after insulting Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, the state council chairman has apologized claiming that his “leader” – Nyesom Wike – called him to order after the incident.

Samuel Nwanosike, Chairman of Ikwerre Local Government Area of ​​Rivers State, was seen in a video clip hurling insults at Mr Fubara. He had called the governor “foolish” and “naive.”

He personally uploaded the video through his Xhandle, PREMIUM TIMES reported.

“So today Fubara is a foolish governor, he is not a mumu governor but a foolish governor.

“Governor Fubara is very naive. He doesn’t know what governance is about,” he had said in the video, where he also accused Fubara of orchestrating kidnappings in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, to pressure President Bola Tinubu to remove Wike as FCT minister.

But a few days after the video went viral, Nwanosike is seen in a new video addressing a political gathering in the state where he apologized, alleging that Wike called him to order.

However, he addressed his apologies to the “people of Nigeria” and did not mention Governor Fubara, at whom he hurled the insults.

“I want to tell the world that my leader (referring to Nyesom Wike) after my outburst at my last rally in Omerulu community, called me to order saying ‘it is wrong for you to speak that way to a governor, whether he is 18 years old .

“I want to offer an unreserved apology to the people of Nigeria for speaking in that manner and say clearly that I regret that action and that it was driven by anger,” Nwanosike said.

He uploaded the video to the microblogging platform on Friday.

Nwanosike, an ally of Wike, has been an outspoken critic of Fubara after the governor fell out with his predecessor.

Messrs Wike and Fubara have been at loggerheads over control of governance and politics in the oil-rich state since last October.

FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and his successor Governor Siminalayi Fubara.

The Ikwerre council chairman has been repeatedly filmed hurling insults at Governor Fubara amid efforts to implement a controversial peace deal brokered by President Tinubu to end the political crisis in the state.

The political rally in Omerulu community was not the first time he was filmed insulting Governor Fubara, whom his “leader”, Mr Wike, played a pivotal role in his rise as governor.

Earlier, on January 6, a video surfaced on Facebook in which Nwanosike insulted the governor while addressing his followers.

He spoke in pidgin English.

“But if you give power to a man (referring to Mr. Fubara) who knows nothing, he takes it and plays,” he said.

He asked the crowd, “No, that’s right?” “No, like that,” the crowd responded.