Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State has defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Naija News reports that Fubara announced this at a stakeholders’ meeting at the Government House in Port Harcourt.
Fubara said: “We can’t support President (Tinubu) if we don’t fully identify with him, not just backyard support. Our decision this evening is that we are moving to the APC.”
The political move comes after Fubara recently ended the protracted and bitter rift with his estranged political godfather and predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The political crisis, which began towards the end of 2023, rapidly escalated and saw an attempt by the pro-Wike members of the Rivers State House of Assembly to impeach Governor Fubara. The height of the crisis saw an arson attack on a section of the State House of Assembly complex in October 2023.
The conflict eventually necessitated intervention from the Federal Government. In March 2025, President Bola Tinubu declared a State of Emergency in Rivers, which resulted in the suspension of Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the House of Assembly for an initial six months.
The state was run by a sole administrator, former Chief of Naval Staff, Ibok Ekwe Ibas, until the suspension was lifted in September 2025.