Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State said he will continue to pursue peace irrespective of the cost.
Mr Fubara stated this on Friday in a state broadcast following the validation of his election as governor of the state by the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed the appeal filed by Tonye Cole, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and affirmed the election of Mr Fubara as governor.
Shortly after the court ruling on Thursday, Mr Fubara told reporters that “everybody should be happy that one elephant is out of the road”.
Apparently referring to the feud with his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, Governor Fubara said, “The other one, by God’s help, will be resolved amicably and the family will be one.”
In Friday’s broadcast, Mr Fubara reiterated his desire to “pursue peace no matter the cost”.
The oil-rich Rivers have been engulfed in crisis, triggered by the struggles over the control of the governance and politics in the state between the governor and his predecessor, Mr Wike, who is now the FCT minister.
The crisis, which had split the Rivers House of Assembly into two factions, prompted the intervention of President Bola Tinubu who brokered a controversial peace deal between Messrs Fubara and Wike.
Despite the criticisms that trailed the deal, Mr Fubara has begun its implementation, saying that the deal is not a “death sentence”.
The crisis, which had split the Rivers House of Assembly into two factions, prompted the intervention of President Bola Tinubu who brokered a controversial peace deal between Messrs Fubara and Wike.
Despite the criticisms that trailed the deal, Mr Fubara has begun its implementation, saying that the deal is not a “death sentence”.
In the broadcast, Mr Fubara thanked Mr Tinubu for his role in the peace process and extended an olive branch to members of the opposition political parties in the state to join hands to build the state.
“I believe we are all Rivers people and by that brotherhood, let us therefore, put aside our differences and bond together to build one indivisible and greater Rivers State that posterity will remember us for.
“In addition, we have made some substantial progress in infrastructure, housing, security, urban renewal development as well as rural healthcare. We intend to sustain the tempo and expand the development net in the great ride to prosperity in our state,” Governor Fubara said.
