Storytimes Newspapers

 The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, alongside a delegation of prominent Rivers State politicians, paid a condolence visit to the family of the late Senator Barinada Mpigi in London on Thursday, February 26, 2026. Senator Mpigi, who represented the Rivers South-East Senatorial District in the National Assembly and chaired the Senate Committee on Works, passed away on February 19, 2026, at the age of 64 following a prolonged illness. A staunch ally of Wike and a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mpigi had previously served two terms in the House of Representatives before his election to the Senate in 2019 and reelection in 2023. Wike, accompanied by his sons Jordan and Joaquin, led the high-powered delegation, which included the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Martin Amaewhule; Senators Magnus Abe, Allwell Onyesoh, and Olaka Nwogu; PDP State Chairman Aaron Chukwuemeka; and other Rivers leaders. The group met with the late senator's w...

  This exchange reflects deeper factional divisions: one side backed by governors like Makinde supporting the Tanimu Turaki-led NWC, and a Wike-aligned group pushing parallel structures, court battles, and convention plans. The rift ties into 2027 permutations, with allegations of plots to weaken PDP for external interests (e.g., past claims Wike aimed to "hold" the party for President Tinubu's re-election, which Makinde has cited as a breaking point). The PDP remains fractured, with governors resisting certain factional decisions and calls for reconciliation from bodies like the Board of Trustees, but the personal barbs suggest the crisis is far from resolution.  Recent developments show the two former allies trading insults, with Makinde declaring that disruptive "vagabonds" have been expelled from the PDP (referring to a November 2025 expulsion that included figures aligned with Wike), while Wike has hit back by labeling Makinde a "repentant vagabond...

 The ongoing political tensions in Rivers State, Nigeria, have intensified following a bold statement by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike. The former Rivers governor accused the state government under Governor Siminalayi Fubara of denying his pro-President Bola Tinubu support group, the Renewed Hope Ambassadors (also referred to as Renewed Hope Family), access to the Yakubu Gowon Stadium in Port Harcourt for a recent rally. Wike made the remarks on Friday, January 30, 2026, while inaugurating coordinators for the group across the state's senatorial districts and 23 local government areas. The event was held at an alternative venue, the Captain Elechi Amadi Polytechnic in Rumuola, Port Harcourt, after the stadium request was reportedly rejected. According to reports from multiple sources, Wike claimed the group had formally applied for the stadium but was denied, describing the decision as unprecedented and provocative. He warned that if similar denia...