Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has officially left the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and joined the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). He made the announcement during a stakeholders’ meeting at the Government House in Port Harcourt on Tuesday, 9th December 2025.
Fubara joins several colleagues who have defected to the APC this year. Sources say his decision follows the end of a long-standing rift with his former political godfather and predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.
The disagreement began in late 2023 over control of state resources and appointments, leading to an attempt to impeach Fubara by pro-Wike lawmakers in the Rivers State House of Assembly. The crisis escalated when part of the House complex was set on fire on 29 October 2023, just hours before the impeachment attempt.
In March 2025, President Bola Tinubu declared a State of Emergency in Rivers, suspending Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and all elected members of the House for six months. Ibok Ekwe Ibas, former Chief of Naval Staff, was appointed sole administrator of the state. The suspension was lifted in September 2025, and Fubara and his team were restored.
Observers believe Fubara’s defection may be an effort to strengthen his political position and align with the federal government, as his influence within the PDP had weakened.
Fubara began his political career in the Rivers State civil service, serving in the finance department, and became the state’s Accountant General in 2020. He won the PDP governorship primary in May 2022 with Wike’s endorsement and went on to win the March 2023 governorship election, defeating APC candidate Tonye Cole and others with a margin of over 300,000 votes.
