House of Representatives member, Hon. Ikenga Ugochinyere, has sounded a stark warning about the ongoing political crisis in Rivers State, stating that the current turmoil suggests Nigeria is in serious danger. Ugochinyere’s comments follow the burning of local government secretariats amid violent clashes that erupted during the Rivers State local government elections.
In a post shared on his X (formerly Twitter) handle, Ugochinyere expressed deep concern that supporters of a serving minister in President Bola Tinubu’s government were allegedly behind the destruction of government properties while security forces failed to intervene.
“Supporters of a serving minister in Tinubu’s government are alleged to be busy burning headquarters of another arm of government, and the Police since morning have not stopped them,” Ugochinyere stated.
The crisis, which has escalated following Saturday’s elections, saw sections of the Eleme Local Government secretariat set ablaze shortly after the arrival of newly elected chairman, Brian Gokpa. The unrest has raised fears of further political instability in the oil-rich state.
Ugochinyere also warned of the consequences if the situation is not brought under control. “Nigeria has worked paths like this before, and the consequences were enormous,” he said, urging President Tinubu to take swift action to prevent further violence and instability in Rivers State.
The lawmaker emphasized that the newly elected local government chairmen had already been sworn in and that no amount of violence could change the outcome. He called on the president to stop the “madness” being carried out by alleged supporters of the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike.
