OPEN LETTER TO BARR. NYESOM WIKE THE HONORABLE MINISTER FCT:

OPEN LETTER TO BARR. NYESOM WIKE THE HONORABLE MINISTER FCT:

By. Comr S A Lukman
Salahudeenalukman@yahoo.com

PROTECT PRESIDENT TINUBU – NO CHAMPION FOREVER

Dear Honorable Minister,

I write to you today with deep respect and a sincere heart. You are a man of great political strength, doggedness, and an unyielding “fight-to-finish” spirit. Your resilience and commitment to any cause you believe in are undeniable, and history will always recognize your instrumental role in shaping the political landscape of Rivers State. Without a doubt, Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s emergence was solely your handiwork—a feat that cannot be disputed.

However, as the wise ones say, “He who fights and runs today, lives to fight another day.” Politics is not just about battles; it is about winning the war in the long run. Your philosophy of never backing down has served you in many instances, but now is the time to reflect. The continued battle with the PDP—your original political base—has cost you the public sympathy you once had. Many Nigerians justified your decision to rebel against the party due to the violation of zoning arrangements in the last general election, but your persistent political fights have eroded that goodwill.

A Yoruba adage says, “Tí bàtà bá tìnrò lárójú, ó sètàn tó fé yà ní.” When a local drum sound to high, it is bound to burst. You have, in many ways, weakened the major opposition party in Nigeria, but have you truly gained more than you have lost?

You are not the first politician to invest heavily in a party and later lose control of it or lose presidential ticket. Late Musa Yaradu was a major financia of SDP prior to 1993 general Election, his prefared candidate was Alh Atiku Abubakar but he later conceded the ticket to MKO Abiola, also Consider President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s experience in the APC after the 2015 general election. When former President Buhari declared, “I belong to nobody, and I belong to everybody,” many saw it as a direct message to the man who had worked tirelessly to bring APC to power. But what was Tinubu’s reaction? He did not go to war. He did not attempt to destroy what he helped build. He exercised patience, strategic maneuvering, and diplomacy. Today, he is the President of Nigeria. His restraint back then paved the way for his ultimate success.

Honorable Minister, one must always respect constituted authority—even when one is the architect of that authority. It is this unchecked godfatherism tendency that has led to your fallout with your successor so quickly. But you are not alone. Former Governors like Mohammed Badaru (Jigawa), George Akume (Benue), and Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna) are all facing similar struggles with the governors they installed. In Kwara, all the arrowheads of the O to ge movement that conspired with federal might to defeat our Saraki dynasty have been sidelined, including former Minister and APC spokesperson, Lai Mohammed.

However, some former governors have managed their political relationships more wisely. Yahaya Bello (Kogi), Ifeanyi Okowa (Delta), Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi), Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano), Aminu Masari (Katsina), Abdullahi Adamu and Tanko Al-Makura (Nasarawa) among others have maintained relative political stability—not because they have no issues with their successors, but because they put the interests of the state and its people above personal grievances.

At this point, you must be extraordinarily conscious and careful. Your new political allies are watching you. They have observed your “fight-to-finish” mentality and are preparing for you. Do not make yourself an easy target.

Most importantly, you must protect the administration of President Tinubu—the very government that is sustaining your political relevance today. Have you taken time to assess the public reaction to the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State? Have you asked yourself if President Tinubu has made more friends or enemies because of this decision? Was it truly necessary? Or was it an avoidable move influenced by your ongoing political battle?

If a re-election were held tomorrow, would APC win Rivers State? Would Rivers people vote for a party now associated with instability? Everyone knows the situation is worse than before, and the growing economic hardship occasion by some economy reform policies of Tinubu administration across the nation only fuels public resentment. You must protect the government you serve under.

President Tinubu is a true democrat with an indisputable history of pro-democracy struggles. His role in NADECO, his political maturity in handling Ambode’s defiance in Lagos, his patience with Buhari’s five Southwest loyalists (Amosun, Ajimonbi, Ambode, Fashola and Aregbeshola), and his recent measured approach to the Lagos State House of Assembly crisis all prove that democracy thrives on strategy, not stubbornness.

The fight-to-finish approach only works in military juntas, not in democratic