January 26, (THEWILL) — The Chairman, House of Representatives’ Committee on Capital Market and other Institutions, Hon. Solomon Bob, on Sunday tackled the Presidency over the recent comments by a presidential spokesperson, Daniel Bwala that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike has been “adequately compensated,” and should stop interfering in Rivers State affairs.
Speaking in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, Hon. Bob said that Bwala’s comments were unbecoming of a presidential aide, “cheeky, unwarranted and stemming from premeditated bile.”
He said, “You could see that he deliberately veered from the question to talk about the minister being adequately compensated. Whatever that means. He doesn’t understand the minister’s contribution to this administration. Mr. Bwala betrayed his absolute lack of judgment by implying that the minister is preventing Governor Fubara from governing Rivers. The manner of his comment is a classic implication framing from a confused individual who dabbles into everything and all things, including those beyond his competence and job description,” he noted.
According to the senior lawmaker, who represents Abua/Odual and Ahoada East Federal Constituency at the National Assembly, Bwala “denigrates his office by infusing his public comments with his own sentiments and biases and passing them off as the President’s.
THEWILL recalls that in what appeared like the Presidency’s formal affirmation of Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s leadership of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the state, Special Adviser to the President on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala stated that the FCT Minister held no leadership rank within the party’s hierarchy and therefore, he had no power to issue directives or instructions in the party.
During an appearance on Channels Television’s Hard Copy on Thursday, January 22, 2026, when he addressed the prolonged friction between the governor and the minister, Bwala noted that Wike, as a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), cannot legally or politically steer the affairs of the APC.
“I agree with the point highlighted by the National Chairman that in Rivers State, Governor Fubara is the leader of the APC. Wike is not a member of the APC. So he cannot speak for the party,” Bwala stated, adding that Wike had been “adequately compensated” for his contributions to the administration with his ministerial appointment. He warned that such compensation does not grant him authority over party structures or the right to obstruct governance.
Declaring that while Wike remains a significant figure within the PDP, Bwala maintained that the APC operates under a strict structure that recognises sitting governors as state leaders.
Bwala noted that President Bola Tinubu respects these party procedures and the rule of law.
“The President believes in compensating people, but not at the expense of the interests of Nigeria. Once you cross the line, you will know,” he added and emphasised that the party stands against any attempt to prevent Fubara from governing, especially in the face of subsisting court orders halting the impeachment process.
Hon. Bob further stated that Bwala’s comments show that the presidential aide “clearly operates on the fringes,” giving the impression that he “sees public office as a gravy train ride.”
Public office, according to Bob, is about service delivery, not adequate compensation.
He said, “Next, he cheekily downplayed the minister’s generally acknowledged superlative performance in the FCT by putting it down merely to exit the TSA. Firstly, exiting the TSA itself was the minister’s ingenious idea.
“Secondly, the President’s acceptance underlines his confidence in the minister’s ability to deliver. That confidence is rooted in his strong record as Rivers governor, for which even President Buhari honoured him – and Buhari was never enamoured of Wike.
“But he wasn’t speaking for the President because the President knows who bears responsibility for the situation in Rivers. Mr. Bwala doesn’t really speak for the President, by the way. That’s not his remit and he is way down the pecking order of the presidential spokesmen.”
Meanwhile, a 24- member committee sent from the National Headquarters of the APC in Abuja to conduct the delegates congress for the upcoming Assembly by-election into Ahoada East 11 and Khana 11 constituencies, in Port Harcourt on Sunday, again restated Fubara’s leadership of the party in the state. The party primary election, following the death of a member and resignation of another, will be held today, Monday.
According to Barrister Smart Ihenacho, during a press conference, the party leader in the state is Governor Fubara.
He said, “We have got a new leader of our party in the state, Governor Fubara and his leadership has brought unity to the party in the state. Everywhere we went to conduct the delegates congress, the people expressed happiness for his leadership. With this renewed unity, the people have queued behind the Renewed Hope Agenda and the re-election of President Tinubu in 2027.”
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