The drums are beating faster, and the dance has become increasingly perilous for both the drummer and the dancer. The once formidable political influence of Nyesom Wike in Rivers State now appears to be approaching a decisive breaking point. What was long projected as unassailable power is colliding with a familiar truth of Nigerian politics: there are no permanent allies or adversaries, only shifting interests.
Regrettably, this prolonged political struggle has never been about the masses. It is a contest fueled largely by personal ambition and self-interest, with scant consideration for the welfare of the people or the long-term stability of the polity. Even more troubling is the unwavering loyalty of some followers who, despite clear warning signs, choose political blindness in exchange for crumbs from power.
Wike’s relevance in Rivers State politics is visibly waning. Expelled from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and yet to find formal acceptance within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), he appears politically unmoored and aligned with no recognised political platform. For a man who once dominated the political landscape, this isolation marks a dramatic fall and offers a sobering lesson on the perils of arrogance and intoxication with power.
Power drunkenness remains a persistent affliction among Nigerian politicians, and Wike’s trajectory may soon join the growing list of cautionary tales. The signals suggest that the game, at least in its current form, is drawing to a close.
Meanwhile, the incumbent Governor of Rivers State is steadily consolidating authority, dismantling entrenched structures of political domination and reasserting the primacy of governance over personal fiefdoms. Should this momentum be sustained, Rivers State may well be on the brink of closing a turbulent and controversial chapter in its political history, opening the door to a more people-centred and accountable era of leadership.
Written by Festus Edovia, anipr, ficm.