Former governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, Tonye Cole, has questioned Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s alignment within the party, insisting that he joined a faction lacking legal recognition.
In an interview with Channels Television, Cole stated that the Emeka Beke-led group remains the legitimate leadership of the APC in Rivers State. Fubara, who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC in December 2025, was welcomed nationally by the party’s leadership and presented with a membership card by Tony Okocha, leader of a rival faction in the state.
Cole argued that Fubara made the “wrong” choice by affiliating with the Okocha-led group, noting: “Who is welcoming him to the APC? Who is issuing him the membership card? Where is he registered under? Tony Okocha is not a legally recognised faction of the APC, and that is where the problem lies.”
He emphasized that although Fubara is nationally recognised as an APC member, the group that admitted him lacks legal standing. “He should come to the Beke-led faction. We will recognise and welcome him because we have the legal authority. He is not safe where he is,” Cole added.
While acknowledging that Fubara’s defection was a smart political move, Cole warned the APC to avoid repeating the 2019 Rivers election crisis, when a court barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising the party’s candidates due to factional disputes.
The controversy underscores ongoing tensions within the APC in Rivers State, highlighting the challenges of party unity and legal recognition amid high-profile defections and factional rivalries.
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