Ijaws for Tinubu 2027, a political group, has called for the immediate dismissal of Nyesom Wike as FCT Minister over his remarks concerning the Ijaw people.

Tamuno Esiri, the group’s leader, made this demand in a statement in Port Harcourt on Friday.

“The Ijaws for Tinubu 2027 demand the immediate removal of Wike if President Tinubu is determined to secure a second term, which he deserves,” Mr Esiri said.

During an interview with journalists on the political crises in Rivers, Mr Wike allegedly referred to the Ijaw people as a minority ethnic group in the Niger Delta.

Mr Esiri condemned Mr Wike’s assertion, insisting that the Ijaws are among the dominant ethnic groups in the region.

He claimed that Mr Wike’s comments if left unchecked, could harm President Bola Tinubu’s chances of re-election in 2027.

“We believe Wike is deliberately undermining the president’s support among the Ijaw people, who constitute a majority in the Niger Delta.

“In our view, Wike’s presence in President Tinubu’s cabinet poses a threat to democracy and peace in the Niger Delta,” he said.

Mr Esiri also urged Mr Tinubu to rein in Mr Wike over his alleged involvement in escalating political crises in Rivers and his purported insults directed at respected elders and political leaders across the country.

He advised the president against believing Mr Wike could still deliver Rivers in the 2027 general elections.

“President Tinubu should note that Wike has lost the political goodwill he carried into the 2023 elections, as an overwhelming majority of Rivers people are firmly behind Governor Siminalayi Fubara.

“Any political interest that believes the FCT Minister can secure victory for the president in the 2027 elections in Rivers State should have a rethink,” he added.

Mr Esiri also criticised the Martins Amaewhule-led House of Assembly for allegedly proposing bills that could further destabilise the state’s political landscape.

He issued a 14-day ultimatum for the lawmakers to heed Mr Tinubu’s call for peace by allowing Mr Fubara to re-present the 2025 Appropriation Bill.

“The legislators must immediately desist from initiating self-serving and anti-River State bills, or they should prepare to be recalled by their constituents.

“If the lawmakers fail to promote peace, we will collaborate with all well-meaning groups and Rivers people who support Governor Fubara and President Tinubu to initiate their recall process.

“The Ijaws for Tinubu 2027 demand the total liberation of Rivers State,” Mr Esiri concluded.

Aformer senator, Nicholas Tofowomo, has urged Senate President Godswill Akpabio to step aside for an impartial investigation into sexual harassment allegations made against him by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.

Mr Tofowomo, who represented Ondo South at the ninth National Assembly, told journalists on Friday in Okitipupa that Mr Akpabio “cannot preside over his case.”

“The allegation of sexual harassment is a serious one, either true or false; it behoves Akpabio to step aside for impartial investigation and let his deputy preside over legislative matters pending the decision of the Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions,” Mr Tofowomo said.

He added, “Akpoti-Uduaghan has taken the case to the United Nations, and we should not make ourselves and our country a laughing stock among the comity of nations over this matter but do the right thing as distinguished members.”

The Senate suspended Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months, effective March 6, over a sexual harassment allegation against the Senate president and a standoff with him over seating arrangements during plenary.

Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central, had also petitioned the Senate, which rejected her claims.

However, Mr Tofowomo, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, who said his view was not based on political affiliation, noted that “the National Assembly should be a place where laws are obeyed and not flouted.”

According to him, the National Assembly makes and implements laws which must be obeyed.

“Suspending Akpoti-Uduaghan was wrong in its entirety; if the Senate said she violated its standing rules, is there anywhere she have been warned? No, so why the sudden suspension?

“Women are supposed to be treated with a lot of courtesy and respect. Yes, there may be a serious allegation, but the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions should investigate the matter in order to exonerate Akpabio,” Tofowomo said.

The former senator maintained that what was distinguished on senators was their ability to obey and respect the laws and do the needful at all times.

He added that out of the 109 senators, only Adenigba Fadahunsi, representing Osun East, told Mr Akpabio the bitter truth over Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan matter.

The PDP chieftain, however, urged President Bola Tinubu to wade into the matter, noting that the matter has been taken to the United Nations and could have a bad image on Nigeria if not treated with the utmost caution.

On Thursday, the Senate passed a vote of confidence in the Senate president over the matter.

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and the lawmaker representing Kogi Central in the National Assembly, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan would appear before the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions (SCEPPP).

This is according to the Senate Deputy Chief Whip, Onyekachi Nwebonyi, who appeared as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday.

He stated that other lawmakers too would narrate to the committee what they know regarding the alleged case of sexual harassment levelled against Akpabio by Natasha.

“All the parties involved would appear before the Committee, including the Senate President. He would come and testify and his testimony would be recorded, likewise other senators,” he stated.

Natasha, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had on February 28 alleged that the incident occurred in December 2023 when she and her husband visited Akpabio’s residence in Uyo, the capital of Akwa Ibom State.

She alleged that during the visit, the Senate President held her hand, led her around his house, and then made inappropriate advances towards her, even in her husband’s presence.

But Nwebonyi, who represents Ebonyi North, accused his colleague of diverting attention, adding that the upper chamber is not perturbed by the allegation.

“In criminal prosecution, there is what we call prima facie evidence, that is evidence on the surface. If there is no prima facie evidence, then there is no case.

“She knows quite alright that what she is saying is to divert attention but we are not disturbed because we know the truth.

“On the alleged date of the incident, so many senators were there. I am one of the star witnesses, I will come and tell the world what I saw,” he added.

Natasha Reports Akpabio
The Senate suspended the lawmaker for violation of the Senate’s rules days after she submitted a petition against Akpabio for sexual assault and other accusations, claims the Senate President has strongly refuted.

But on Tuesday, the suspended Kogi Senator took her case to a global stage.

At the Women in Parliament session held at the Inter-Parliamentary Union Meeting (IPU) at the United Nations in New York, Senator Natasha sought justice and the intervention of global democratic institutions.

The lawmaker demanded justice over what she described as injustice meted out to her. Senator Natasha described her suspension from the Senate as illegal.

“I was suspended illegally because I submitted a petition for sexual harassment against the President of the Nigerian Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio. I thought that by submitting the petition, he would recuse himself and both of us would submit ourselves to the Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petition for a fair, transparent investigation. But unfortunately, I was silenced and I was suspended,” she told the gathering.

“That means I’m here illegally, but I have no other place to go but to come here and speak to you because this is a bigger picture. This is a bigger picture. It depicts the crisis of women’s political representation. My suspension is not just about me. It’s about the systemic exclusion of women from political leadership in Nigeria,” the Kogi lawmaker added.

“At no time did I ever harass any woman. I was raised very well by my late single mother, and I have always upheld respect for women. I was even awarded the most gender-friendly governor in Nigeria,” he said.

The Senate President, who said he had been inundated with calls on the matter since February 25, and that he was aware of the growing social media discourse, urged Nigerians, the media, and social media users to refrain from concluding.