Port Harcourt, December 10, 2025 – Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara has formally defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), delivering a devastating blow to the opposition and handing President Bola Tinubu full control of Nigeria’s oil-rich South-South geopolitical zone.
The announcement was made on Tuesday at a stakeholders’ meeting held at the Government House in Port Harcourt. Flanked by thousands of supporters, local government chairmen, and key political appointees, Fubara declared that the PDP abandoned him at the height of the political crisis that nearly cost him his office, while the APC — through President Tinubu’s direct intervention — offered the protection and support he needed to survive.
“I went to see Mr. President not just for a personal visit, but for a consultation on state matters,” Fubara told the cheering crowd. “The most important outcome of that meeting is that we now have full support to leave where we were because we didn’t get the protection we needed. The struggles we faced were due to the crisis in the state. If President Tinubu had not intervened, there wouldn’t be a Siminalayi Fubara today. We have the people and supporters with us. Our decision is to move to the APC and fully support the President’s second-term bid.”
The defection comes barely 48 hours after 16 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly loyal to Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike formally defected from the PDP to the APC. The lawmakers, led by Speaker Martin Amaewhule, cited the PDP national leadership’s inability to resolve the protracted crisis in the state chapter as their reason for leaving. Only three pro-Fubara lawmakers now remain in the PDP, effectively rendering the assembly an APC-dominated body.
Fubara’s move brings to a dramatic climax a two-year power struggle with his political godfather, Nyesom Wike. What began as a succession arrangement in 2023 quickly deteriorated into open warfare over control of the state’s political structure, finances, and grassroots machinery. The crisis peaked in March 2025 when President Tinubu invoked emergency powers under Section 305 of the Constitution, suspending Governor Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and the entire House of Assembly for six months. A retired Vice Admiral, Ibok-Ette Ibas, was appointed administrator during the period.
Although Fubara was reinstated in September 2025 after a Tinubu-brokered peace deal, the underlying tensions never resolved. The governor repeatedly accused Wike of attempting to run the state by proxy, while Wike insisted Fubara had betrayed the agreement that brought him to power.
Speaking on Tuesday, Fubara made it clear that the PDP’s national leadership — particularly its acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum — failed to stand by him when he needed it most. He praised President Tinubu for personally stepping in to restore stability, saying the federal government’s intervention saved both his administration and the state from collapse.
With his defection, Fubara becomes the latest in a string of South-South governors who have moved from the PDP to the APC in 2025. Delta’s Sheriff Oborevwori, Akwa Ibom’s Umo Eno, and Bayelsa’s Douye Diri all made similar moves earlier in the year, leaving the PDP with no serving governor in the entire South-South region for the first time since 1999.
The PDP reacted with fury. National Publicity Secretary Debo Ologunagba described the defection as a “self-inflicted political suicide” and accused Fubara of surrendering to “federal intimidation.” The party’s statement expressed pity rather than anger, saying Fubara had developed “Stockholm Syndrome” toward those who once suspended him from office.
In Rivers State, PDP chairman Aaron Chukwuemo called the development “a betrayal of the people who voted overwhelmingly for the PDP in 2023,” vowing that the party would regroup and reclaim the state in 2027.
APC National Chairman Abdullahi Ganduje welcomed Fubara with open arms, describing the defection as “a homecoming of progressive forces.” He promised full integration of Fubara’s structure into the APC and pledged federal support for ongoing projects in the state.
Social media exploded with reactions. Videos of Fubara’s declaration speech went viral within minutes, with supporters celebrating what they called “liberation from Wike’s grip,” while critics accused the governor of trading principle for survival. The hashtag #FubaraToAPC trended nationwide for several hours.
For now, Governor Fubara says his administration will focus on completing flagship projects — including the Port Harcourt Ring Road, Trans-Kalabari Road, and massive investments in education and healthcare — while openly campaigning for President Tinubu’s re-election in 2027.
The political map of Rivers State, long regarded as the heartbeat of PDP dominance in the Niger Delta, has been redrawn in a single afternoon. As the dust settles, one thing is certain: the battle for 2027 has already begun, and the APC now holds all the cards in Nigeria’s most lucrative state.
