According to the report from the Punch, an Elder statesman and National Leader of the Pan-Niger Delta Forum, Chief Edwin Clark questioned the possibility of reconciling two individuals in conflict, comparing their relationship to that of a divorced couple and their house help or a father and son.
He asserted that outsiders would not accept this dynamic and attributed the issue to Wike's belief in his control over political structures in Rivers State.
He argued that these structures have been in place through multiple governors and do not belong to any single individual.
He highlighted Wike's relatively short history in the context of Rivers State, pointing out that he had not been born when the state was created.
He then shared his involvement in the creation of Rivers State and the roles of individuals like Chief Harold Dappa-Biriye, Enyinnaya, and Adaka Boro during a tumultuous time marked by war and invasions from Biafran forces.
He said, "How do you bring them together? One man says I have divorced. But you are my house help. There is no way. You are my son. There is no way any outsider can accept him. This is because Wike does not see anything wrong with him. He believes that he is still controlling the structures in Rivers State whereas those structures have been there from governor to governor.
They don’t belong to one person. Wike was not yet born when Rivers was created. I participated in the creation of the state under (Chief Harold) Dappa-Biriye when the war took place, and the Midwest was invaded by the Biafrans. Rivers State was invaded too. Some young men were teachers in a Government College, Warri at that time. Two of them, Enyinnaya and Adaka Boro, were trained in England as graduates."