The All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the 2023 Rivers governorship election, Tonye Cole, has said that the residents are the biggest losers in the ongoing political crisis in the South South State.

In an interview with Channels Television on Thursday, October 11, 2024, Cole stated that the state’s development has come to a standstill due to the battle for supremacy between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike.

Cole made this observation in response to Court of Appeal’s judgment affirming the ruling of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which annulled the presentation and passage of the 2024 budget for Rivers state.

He said, “As it stands right now, the people of Rivers do not matter in the equation that is being played out.

“If the interests of Rivers people were on the table, we would not even be where we are today. This entire fight is political, and it has to do with a very small political family.

As we speak today, there is no development. The political battle is affecting the poor man on the street.”

Cole highlighted that Fubara is in a dangerous political situation that is hindering governance in the state.

He said, “The governor finds himself in a very precarious political situation. Of course, by presenting the budget back to that assembly, what this means is that the assembly led by Martins Amaewhule is recognised as the legal assembly.

“Once that happens, he has to now navigate a possible impeachment issue.

“We have a state where the governor is PDP, the house of assembly based on the court case is APC, and you have a local government structure that is APP. So, you have three different parties running the state.”