Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara says his predecessor and Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike remains his principal despite the recent political crisis that rocked the state.
The governor noted that at no time during the crisis did he recruit anybody to malign Wike.
He urged Rivers people to put the impasse behind them and pursue peace.
Fubara spoke at the opening of the 2023/2024 legal year rededication church service held at St. Cyprian’s Anglican Church in Port Harcourt.
Wike had arrived at the church service almost at the end and had a handshake with his successor before sitting on the same row with him while the service lasted.
Fubara started his speech by jokingly appealing to the congregants to suspend the recognition of guests in order not to commit another impeachable offence.
He said, “My oga remains my oga. Whatever that has happened is in the past. I have not sent anybody to malign anybody.
“We have a mission to give you development. We also know that the devil will always come in, one way or the other, but the important thing is for us to identify it and push the devil out of our road so that we can continue.
“Thank you for your support. We need peace to progress, and that is only possible in the atmosphere of tranquillity.”
At the opening of the 2023/2024 Legal Year, Fubara lauded Wike’s performance in the judicial sector but said more still needed to be done.
He said: “Over the last eight years, the immediate-past Governor Wike gave attention to the judiciary in the scheme of things and achieved so much to build and reposition the state’s judicial system for effective judicial services and justice delivery.
“The new courthouse complexes, for both state and federal courts, the automated filing system, and the improved working conditions, including the provision of vehicles and accommodations for judicial officers, constitute significant measures from the government towards achieving judicial effectiveness and efficiency in our State.
“However, while we can all see and feel the improvements and resultant impact of these improvements on justice delivery, we must also admit that our judiciary has not yet reached the point of self-actualisation.
“There is still work to be done by all stakeholders since access to effective justice delivery is a shared and collective responsibility.”
Fubara believes that the rule of law and justice were deeply rooted in moral ethics and values for the creation of a just, secure, and egalitarian society.
He said: “I wish to reiterate that my interest in the rule of law, judicial independence and effective justice in Rivers State is profound and heartfelt.
“I know that the judiciary and justice delivery system in Rivers is still a work in progress.
“We have come a long way when compared with most other states of the federation in terms of institutional infrastructure, strength, capacity and competence.”
