Wilfred Alabo-Jack, PortHarcourt
Angry youths from Obi Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State, on Tuesday, pulled down a statue of the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
The youths dismantled the statue during a protest over tenure of local government chairmen.
On Monday, the battle for supremacy between the supporters of Governor Siminalayi Fubara and Wike shifted to the local government areas in the state.
The two leaders had fallen out barely three months after Fubara succeeded Wike as Rivers governor.
Both leaders on one hand and their supporters on the other hand have been embroiled in heated exchanges, though the situation had been calm for a while until Monday.
The brouhaha over the extension of the tenure of Local Government chairmen by six months by the Martin Amaewhu-led faction of the state House of Assembly, however, reignited the dispute.
While the governor on Tuesday morning in a statewide broadcast, directed the chairmen, most of whom are Wike’s loyalists, to vacate office following the expiration of their tenure, the outgoing council bosses have refused on the grounds that the pro-Wike faction of Rivers House of Assembly has extended their tenure by six months over Fubara-led government’s failure to conduct Local Government election.
Fubara had in his broadcast directed all the 23 LGA chairmen to hand over to Head of Administration in their respective councils.
After the Governor’s directive, youths in large numbers trooped to council secretariats across the state.
In Obi Akpor, where Wike served as council chairman for two terms, some youths destroyed a statue erected in his honour.
They were heard shouting, “No more Wike”, before destroying the statue.
Pieces of the object were smashed on the ground by the angry youths.
The incident occurred as protests spread through the entire state.
