As Nyesom Wike throws Molotov cocktails left, right and centre

Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers state is not your ideal governor when you need finesse and diplomacy in public speech-making. When he decides to go vernacular (Pidgin English) in his guttural voice, he could go as raw as the occasion permits or demands when trying to make a point. His sense of humour is also something you can never fail to notice as he sprinkles it on his punchy diatribes against whoever stays within his range. Governor Wike is not the type that shies away from controversy, especially when it is meant to score a cheap political point against him. He digs deep and responds accordingly.

He is someone who would always refuse to be bullied politically, even if you are his benefactor in that wise. Those who have had some reasons to engage him in a political propaganda tussle can testify to that. He fights any course in which he believes, like a bulldozer. He takes no prisoner, as he shoots from the hip. You may ask the immediate past governor of Rivers state (his predecessor) Rotimi Amaechi; the immediate past national chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus; the current PDP national chairman, Dr Iyiorcha Ayu; the presidential candidate of the PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar; the governor of Edo state and his deputy, Godwin Obaseki and Philip Shaibu, respectively; and even the rambunctious Femi Fani-Kayode, among others, who have at one time or the other, had a head-on collision with the “high-tension” governor, as he is fondly called by his numerous admirers. They can testify to his high-octane style of engagement.

I won’t bore you with the stories of what transpired between him and each of the aforementioned people. If you have been following events in the political space in Nigeria keenly for the past eight years or thereabouts, you would understand what I’m talking about, as far as the persona of Governor Wike is concerned.

Loathe, or love him, Wike is a man of action – “a talk and do” kind of governor, if you’d like to go vernacular. With him, what you see is what you get. He is a straight talker and a straight shooter. Recall that Wike it was who challenged in court, the “illegality” of the federal government collecting value-added tax (VAT) and disbursing same on behalf of the state governments in a manner that does not reflect how much each of the 36 states contributes to the pool. The case is still pending before the (supreme) court.

Sometimes last month, the Rivers state governor fired the first “Molotov Cocktails” by hailing President Muhammadu Buhari for reportedly releasing the outstanding sums of the 13% derivation funds accrued to oil-producing states in the Niger Delta region since 1999; a gesture to which he attributes most of his infrastructural breakthroughs in the state. Wike said this on Friday, November 18, 2022, at the commissioning of the Nabo Graham Douglas campus of the Nigerian Law School in Rumueme, Port Harcourt.

Wike’s comment, no doubt, rattled some people, who on one hand were no admirers of the president but lacks the gut of Wike to speak up, and on the other hand, some of his governor colleagues in the Niger Delta especially those of Edo, Bayelsa, and Akwa-Ibom states, who hitherto remained silent on whether or not they collected money. As controversial as the commendation (of President Buhari by Wike) sounds, none of the governors could deny receiving money from the outstanding 13% derivation either. Where the issue lies is in how much they have received and what they did with what they’ve received so far. That’s where Wike stands on a pedestal higher than those who begrudged him for the revelation.

As if that were not enough, he promised that on account of the released 13% derivation outstanding, more projects should be expected between now and May 29, 2023, when he is expected to leave office after he would have completed his two-term – eight years in office as a governor. He is not unaware of the displeasure his public commendation of President Buhari has caused. Hence he said: “Instead of human beings saying they appreciate you, they become envious that why were you appreciated. Because I said Buhari thank you, I’m having problems today. I’m not a fan of Buhari. I told the honourable attorney-general but when a man has done well, say he has done well in that area. On the other area, he has not done well, you equally say so”. He capped it up, saying, he owes nobody any apology (for commending the president).

Ordinarily, one would think that, following years of undeclared hostility between Governor Wike and the administration of President Buhari, an armistice is in sight. But that is for those who do not know the former minister of state for education well enough. A man who says it, the way he sees it. At an event hosted for members of the senior executive course 44 (2022) of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) at the presidential villa in Abuja on Thursday last week, President Buhari accused state governors of stealing local governments’ allocation in their respective states. This is an unfortunate development, the president blames for the abysmal level of poverty in Nigeria.

Trust Governor Wike, a man who never shies away from airing his views, when it comes to matters of national importance, especially those affecting his “constituencies”. No sooner had the president levelled the accusation against the state governors, than Wike responded, challenging the president to name the culprits, asking him not to generalise and saying his administration has never tampered with local governments’ allocations in Rivers state.

At an occasion where Governor Wike threw another of his Molotov Cocktails, was Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue state. Meanwhile, Benue state is on record as one of the three states (including Lagos and Ekiti) which were in staunch opposition to the proposed financial autonomy for local Governments.

I wonder how Ortom would perceive the intention of his political ally since he is likely to be guilty of Buhari’s accusation. This is because you cannot kick against the financial autonomy of the local government if a governor has not mistaken the local government’s treasury for his “Agbada’s breast pocket, why resist the move for the financial autonomy of the Local Government? The Molotov cocktails have two categories of potential targets. One is President Buhari – the accuser, and two, the potentially culpable governors, some of whom could be in attendance at the occasion.

The latest incident is the one involving him and the immediate past speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Honourable Yakubu Dogara, who was formerly of the All Progressives Congress, (APC). Dogara fell out with the party over the choice of its presidential running mate. The presidential candidate of the party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a Yoruba by tribe, a Muslim by faith from the south-west, had chosen a northern Muslim, former governor of Borno state, Kashim Shettima, a decision that did not go down well with most Nigerian Christians, especially in the north, among whom is Dogara, and other political gladiators in the north. He therefore, on Friday last week, declared support for the opposition People’s Democratic Party’s (PDP’s) presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar – a northerner with a southern running mate, who is having a running battle with Wike, over his (Atiku’s) failure to prevail on the party chairman, Senator Iyiorcha Ayu, to resign so that a southerner could occupy the office of the chairman of the party in line with what he calls the philosophy of the founding fathers of the party – “Justice, Equity and Fairness”. So, on Monday, this week, Wike said Dogara had claimed that he wanted the presidency to be zoned to the south, yet, he had now turned around to support a northerner.

As I put this piece together, the “Gbas, Gbos” (exchange of diatribe, in local parlance) between them is still ongoing. Wike accused Dogara of not being able to stand by his own words. But the former speaker wasted no time hitting back, saying he does not believe that the Rivers state governor is suffering from amnesia but that: “It’s such a pity if you cannot remember what our discussion and agreement was all about. Why should only your own position be respected and followed? I would never betray a friend and a brother, that is why I won’t respond to your tirade on live TV”.

Say what you may, Governor Wike is never the type to be intimidated, especially, when it comes to expressing his opinion, a quality which finds his metaphorical expression in analogy with “Molotov Cocktails”.

Therefore, as the governor throws his Molotov cocktails around, let those under his radar respond to his challenge. Let them defend themselves, if they can, like Honourable Dogara appears to be doing. The governors of the beneficiary states should tell the public whether or not, they receive the 13% derivation refund, no matter how little. Let them also tell their constituents, what they, are doing, have done, or will be doing with what they have so far received to mitigate the impact of Wike’s Molotov cocktails on their political castles. Also, let President Buhari name those governors he’d purportedly fingered in the art of pilfering local government allocations in their states, and stop painting all the governors with one brush.

Abubakar writes from Ilorin. He can be reached via 08051388285 or [email protected]