Basiru Floors Wike, Defends Party Supremacy and Constitutional Order in Rivers Politics

By Tade Asifat

Archbishop Benny Terry Danson Urges Peace, Defends Hon Alabo Tammy Danagogo Amid Rivers State Political Tensions

The President of the International Council of Archbishops and Bishops for Charismatic and Pentecostal Churches, His Imperial Royal Eminence Archbishop King Benny Terry Danson (also known as the King of Knossos), has appealed for peace and restraint amid the ongoing political crisis in Rivers State.

Addressing journalists on dressing national and state issues, Archbishop Benny Terry called on the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to intervene in the lingering dispute between the current Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, and his predecessor, now Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike. He warned that the prolonged tension poses a serious threat to political stability and development in the state.

The Archbishop, who described himself as a peace advocate and long-term resident of Rivers State, said he has lived in the state since the 1990s and raised his children there. According to him, his deep personal ties to Rivers State give him a moral obligation to speak out in the interest of peace and unity.

“I am not speaking as a politician but as a man of God and a stakeholder in Rivers State,” he said. “I have lived here for decades, raised my family here, and engaged successive administrations from the era of Ada George to the present leadership.”

Archbishop Benny Terry also strongly defended the former Secretary to the State Government, Hon Dr. Alabo Tammy Danagogo, dismissing allegations that he plotted against Minister Wike. He described Danagogo as a noble, disciplined, and God-fearing individual whose character, he said, has been unfairly maligned.

“I have known Hon Dr. Alabo Tammy Danagogo closely over the years. He is a man of integrity who would never plot harm against anyone. The allegations being peddled against him are fabricated and meant to discredit his personality,” he stated.

He further described reports alleging that Danagogo conspired with a pastor to assassinate the former governor as “mischievous, unfounded, and ridiculous,” insisting that such claims are being used to fuel political conflict.

While acknowledging Minister Wike’s achievements and developmental strides during his tenure as governor, Archbishop Benny Terry Danson expressed concern that the ongoing feud could overshadow his legacy. He urged Wike to embrace reconciliation and allow peace to prevail in the state.

“Minister Wike has done commendable work for Rivers State and Nigeria at large,” he said. “However, the current confrontation with Governor Fubara risks damaging his credibility and legacy.”

The cleric emphasized that leadership should be rooted in mentorship and continuity, noting that a good leader should support the growth and success of successors rather than resist it.

“A good father desires to see his children do better than him. Power is temporary, but peace and legacy endure,” he added.

His Imperial Royal Eminence, Archbishop Benny Terry Danson called on Minister Wike to disregard the allegations against Tammy Danagogo, describing them as false publications aimed at inciting discord. He appealed for dialogue, reconciliation, and mutual respect among all political actors in the state.

He warned against allowing political power struggles to degenerate into chaos, stressing that no ambition is worth the loss of lives or the destruction of the future of younger generations.

“No political position is worth bloodshed. We must not create enemies or sow seeds of conflict because of power. There will always be a time of reckoning,” he cautioned.

The Archbishop concluded by urging all parties to set aside personal differences and work collectively for the peace, unity, and sustainable development of Rivers State.

Right of Reply

Bukola Saraki: The Burden of Standing When Others Walk Away

By: Osaze Osa

In politics, consistency is often mistaken for weakness by those who mistake proximity to power for relevance. The recent attempt to paint His Excellency, Senator Bukola Saraki, as a politician undone by duplicity collapses under the weight of facts, history, and context.

Let us be clear: engaging across political divides is not duplicity. It is statesmanship. Senator Saraki is not a member of the ruling APC and owes no one an explanation for maintaining national relationships.
A former Senate President does not retire into partisan isolation; he remains a national asset.
As Senate President from 2015 to 2019, Bukola Saraki presided over the most independent, productive, and reform-driven Senate in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic.

Under his leadership, the legislature asserted its constitutional role, strengthened oversight, and resisted executive overreach. That era remains incomparable to today’s Senate leadership, where legislative independence has largely been replaced by pliancy. Any attempt to equate Saraki’s tenure with what is currently obtainable is not analysis — it is revisionism.

One of the most consequential, yet conveniently forgotten, moments of Saraki’s leadership was his principled resistance to policies that threatened Nigeria’s fragile unity. During the Buhari presidency, Saraki was among the few national leaders who openly cautioned against the Muslim–Muslim political configuration, warning of its long-term implications for national cohesion.

That position was not politically convenient, but it was statesmanlike — placing national balance above personal ambition.
Those who now accuse Saraki of lacking courage should explain why they were silent when such difficult conversations needed brave voices.

The claim that Saraki is isolated within the PDP is equally hollow. History tells a different story. Former Senate Presidents Pius Anyim and David Mark eventually left the party. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar once exited the PDP as well. Many who wore the party’s colours at critical moments chose personal exits when the pressure mounted.

Even Governor Seyi Makinde, now cited as a benchmark of relevance, was a central figure in the G5 episode that openly worked against the PDP’s presidential candidate in the 2023 election. That episode remains one of the most damaging internal betrayals in the party’s history.

Saraki, by contrast, stayed.

In 2019, at a critical moment when Atiku Abubakar faced diplomatic and political headwinds, it was Saraki’s leadership and credibility that helped secure him a soft landing to travel to the United States — an intervention that altered the trajectory of that campaign. That is not the action of a distrusted or irrelevant politician; it is the mark of a trusted institutional figure.
While others defected, negotiated personal deals, or undermined the party from within, Saraki remained a stabilising backbone of the PDP. He chaired reconciliation efforts, absorbed political blows, and placed party survival above ego.

Remaining when others leave requires more conviction than leaving when things get tough.
Comparisons with Senator Godswill Akpabio also betray a shallow understanding of political leadership. Alignment with power is not the same as leadership of institutions. Saraki’s Senate strengthened democracy; today’s legislature struggles to assert independence. History will remember that difference.
Saraki’s critics speak of cleverness and arrogance. But politics does not only reward alignment; it also rewards courage, foresight, and the willingness to stand alone when principles demand it.

Today, Bukola Saraki remains standing with the PDP — not because it is easy, but because consistency is his political currency. And in a political culture where defection has become the norm, standing firm has become the rarest form of leadership.
History is indeed unforgiving.
But when the dust settles, it will remember who stayed, who fled, and who stood for institutions over convenience.

Osaze Osa
writes from Abuja