Post falsely claims video shows suspended Nigerian governor apologising to predecessor

Published on May 15, 2025 at 16:53
3 min read
By Samad UTHMAN, AFP Nigeria

Before he was suspended for six months by Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, Rivers state governor Siminalayi Fubara had been in the news over a power struggle with his predecessor, Nyesom Wike. A Facebook account has posted a video claiming it shows Fubara begging Wike for forgiveness last month in a bid to reconcile. However, the claim is false; AFP Fact Check found that the video was taken back in 2023 after Fubara became governor. The two men later fell out.

“Jubilation in River state as Governor SIM Fubara apologize to Nysome wike last night as they both finally reconcile back (sic)”, reads the caption of a Facebook video published on April 15, 2025.

Screenshot showing the false post, taken May 13, 2025

Shared more than 800 times, the video shows Fubara speaking to the crowd with Wike beside him.

The post was published by an account called “Agozi commedy”. A review of the account shows it posts political video content, mostly of Tinubu and Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate.

Protracted power struggle

Fubara was elected governor of Rivers state in March 2023, succeeding Wike, a lawyer who currently serves as the minister in charge of Nigeria’s capital, Abuja (archived here and here).

Shortly after Fubara’s inauguration, he became embroiled in a battle with his predecessor over control of the state (archived here).

The tussle culminated in a failed impeachment attempt and a dispute with state legislators, which resulted in the demolition of the state assembly complex (archived here and here).

In March 2025, Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers state and suspended Fubara, his deputy Ngozi Odu, and the State Assembly for six months. He subsequently appointed Ibokette Ibas, a retired vice-admiral, as the state administrator for the period of Fubara’s suspension (archived here).

The decision sharply divided opinion in the country, with critics highlighting the president’s disavowal of a similar emergency declaration by the federal government in the past.

In April, Fubara reportedly visited Wike in Abuja to seek reconciliation, days after local media said he met Tinubu in London over the protracted political crisis in the state (archived here and here).

However, the video in the Facebook post does not show Fubara apologising to Wike.

Old clip

Using Google Lens to conduct reverse image searches on the video keyframes, AFP Fact Check traced the original to a YouTube video uploaded on March 24, 2023 — several years before the two men fell out (archived here).

The video is titled: “I Dedicated My Victory To Wike And For The Unity Of Rivers State- Fubara Declare.”

In the clip, Fubara is heard thanking Wike and other political allies for their support and effort in canvassing for votes that helped him coast to victory in gubernatorial elections held on March 18, 2025.

A comparison of the two videos shows the footage is the same.

Screenshots comparing the Facebook post (left) and the original YouTube video

Speaking into a microphone, Fubara says: “We stand for something, the unity of Rivers state, the progress of Rivers state, the continuation and consolidation of the new Rivers vision and we are going to work with everybody who believes in the vision and continue to bring better lives, good services, protection of the dignity of every Rivers resident, protection of integrity of this state in all phases and make sure we continue to defend our party in the state.”

AFP Fact Check previously debunked claims about the power struggle between Fubara and Wike here and here.

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