The Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara has expressed profound gratitude to President Bola Tinubu for his “fatherly intervention” in the political crisis that rocked the state recently.

Fubara’s gratitude was revealed in a statement he signed and issued to Journalists in Port Harcourt on Saturday.

He said that the president’s mediation “opened a series of communication channels to facilitate the timely resolution of the festering political crisis”.

He also appreciated elder statesmen, who also waded into the matter to ensure that peace and stability returned to the state.

Fubara gave an account of what led to his visit to the Assembly complex on Monday, to assess the level of damage and initiate immediate measures to protect lives and property within the complex.

He affirmed that he was inundated with reports on Sunday that the hallowed chamber of the assembly had been gutted by fire.

He said that the fire was successfully put out by the fire service, after which security agencies took control of the situation.

“I charged the security agencies to thoroughly investigate the incident and report to me.

“Shortly after, I got reports that the assembly had broken into two factions: one claiming to have impeached and suspended the House Leader and three others, preparatory to initiating an impeachment action against me.

“The other rival faction also claimed to have impeached the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, thus sparking off some form of political crisis.

“Let me clearly state that my actions are aimed at restoring peace and stability in our state.

“I am a man of peace, and as governor, the advancement of our state is my primary concern.