Oby Ndukwe, a political analyst and native of Rivers State, has stated that Nyesom Wike, an Ikwerre man rather than an Ijaw man, introduced Governor Sim Fubara to the political scene, highlighting the cross-ethnic nature of Rivers State's political dynamics.
She stressed that it is false to characterize the conflict as an ethnic conflict.
(Image courtesy of The Punch Newspaper's official Facebook page.)
Ndukwe challenged the idea of an ethnic division by pointing out that some Ijaw people support Wike and his policies. She contended that some people would try to frame the fight in terms of ethnicity in order to take advantage of the circumstances for personal gain—a strategy frequently employed by those looking to profit from political unrest.
(Image courtesy of the verified Facebook page of Channels Television)
In an interview with TVC, she remarked, "It's a wrong narrative to say this is an ethnic fight. Because "the man who brought Fubara into power is an Ikwerre man, he's not an Ijaw man". I don't know how many of the Ijaws who are also supporting Wike and whatever he's trying to correct. But you see for those who are trying to make it look like an ethnic thing. I think it's expected that some persons always want to benefit when there is crisis.''
However, you can see that there are people attempting to portray it as an ethnic issue. It makes sense, in my opinion, that certain people would constantly seek to gain an advantage during a crisis.