Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminialayi Fubara, has alleged that the explosion near Hotel Presidential in Port Harcourt was a deliberate act aimed at staging insecurity to justify a call for emergency rule in the state. The incident occurred during a protest by supporters of the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Chief Nyesom Wike.

Governor Fubara’s Allegations

Governor Fubara, speaking while hosting a delegation from the Senate Committee on Privatisation and Commercialisation, claimed that the explosion was intended to create an impression of heightened insecurity. The governor noted that the Senate Committee, led by Chairman Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, was in Port Harcourt to meet with the state government when the incident occurred.

Fubara emphasized that the act was a ploy by individuals opposed to the state’s current administration. “The failed attempt to detonate the explosive device at Hotel Presidential was a deliberate move to support the call for a state of emergency,” Fubara said. He stressed that the perpetrators aimed to manipulate the situation to undermine the state and achieve their objectives.

According to Fubara, the same people who had advised the Senate Committee against visiting the state were behind the explosion. He explained that some youths were hired to protest for the extension of the tenure of former local government chairmen who had completed their three-year terms. The protesters, aware that members of the National Assembly were guests at the Hotel Presidential, attempted to detonate an explosive device near the hotel.

Political Intrigues and Protest

The governor revealed that the plan was foiled when the device prematurely detonated, injuring the individual responsible for planting it. “The intention was to create chaos and justify the call for a state of emergency, using the presence of the Senate Committee as leverage,” Fubara explained.

Governor Fubara expressed his commitment to protecting Rivers State and its supporters against those he described as “predators.” He questioned why the law seemed inactive against certain offenders, suggesting that some individuals were perceived as being above the law. “There is nowhere in the country where tenure elongation for former local government chairmen has been an issue,” Fubara noted, highlighting the unusual nature of the protests.

Fubara reiterated his stance that he is not fighting anyone but is defending the state from those who feel they control the lives of others. He called on the Senate Committee to recognize the true motives behind the protests and the explosion.

Security and Legal Concerns

Governor Fubara also mentioned the broader implications of the incident on the state’s security and governance. He urged the federal government and security agencies to take decisive action against those attempting to destabilize Rivers State for their political gains.

The governor disclosed that the dynamite attack was carefully planned to coincide with the visit of the Senate Committee. “As a matter of fact, let me tell you, I know of everything that is happening. Yesterday (Tuesday), they (protesters) were aware that you are in the State. So, there was an attempt to create a serious problem,” Fubara said. “There was a plan to detonate dynamite at the Hotel Presidential because you people were there. But this God that we serve, it happened that the man who was trying to do it, detonated it but just a few seconds after, it blew his hands off.”

He explained that the protesters and their sponsors aimed to exploit the Senate Committee’s visit to push for emergency rule. “The idea was that as you were hearing the state of emergency, it will be so that by the time they finish when you return to have your sitting tomorrow (Thursday), the debate will be from somebody from this State who called you people to tell you not to come. He will now raise the issue of a state of emergency, and say, after all, distinguished colleagues saw it happen while you were in Rivers State, that you saw what happened,” the governor elaborated.

Source: Vanguard