Nyesom Wike Net Worth and Biography

Ezenwo Nyesom Wike is a Nigerian politician and the sixth and current Governor of Rivers State, Nigeria. Wike served as the Executive Chairman of Obio Akpor Local Government Area for two terms, from 1999 to 2007.  On July 14, 2011, he was named Minister of State for Education. After Mrs Ruqqayatu was fired, Wike was appointed Acting Minister of Education but resigned before the end of his term to run for Governor of Rivers State. Viola Onwuliri took his place. He won the Rivers State People’s Democratic Party primary in 2014 and nominated former State Secretary Ipalibo Banigo as his running mate for deputy governor. In March 2022, Wike indicated that he would contest for President of Nigeria under the People’s Democratic Party platform ahead of the 2023 General Election. However, he was defeated by Atiku Abubakar, who won the primary with 371 votes while Wike received 237 votes as the first runner-up. Here, RNN details Governor Nyesom Wike’s net worth and biography

Bio Data

Early Life and Education

Wike was born on December 13, 1967. He is from Ikwerre, Rumuepirikom in Obio-Akpor, Rivers State. He attended Government Secondary School Eneka in Obiakpor, Rivers State. After his O’level exams, he enrolled at the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUT). There, he earned a Bachelor of Laws degree before entering law school in 1997. Wike also received a Master of Arts in Political and Administrative Studies from RSUT.

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Political Career

Wike began his political career in Rivers as the Executive Chairman of Obio Akpor Local Government Area, which he held until 2007, after being re-elected in 2003. In 2007, he was appointed as the chief of staff to Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi. Afterwards, President Goodluck Jonathan named him as Minister of State for Education in July 2011, and he was promoted to Federal Minister of Education in September 2013. However, he resigned as Federal Minister to run for governor of his home state, Rivers State, in 2015.

The Wike’s Election Controversy

On 13 May 2015, the Rivers State Election Tribunal, based in Abuja, began hearings on Wike’s election. Dr Dakuku Peterside of the APC had asked the tribunal to annul the election of Nyesom Wike of the PDP, who was declared winner as governor in the elections held on 11 April 2015, on the grounds that it was marred by malpractices and non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act. Wike argued that the Tribunal should be held in Port Harcourt rather than Abuja. However, the then-President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachawa, dismissed Wike’s arguments and ordered that the tribunal be convened in Abuja for security reasons. In addition to Rivers, Justice Zainab ruled that all Election Petition Tribunals for Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe be conducted in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja.

After failing to serve Wike with a court summon, presiding Justice Muazu Pindiga granted Mr Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu’s request to grant an order for substituted service on the governor-elect because Wike had been evading service of court summons and other processes in the petition challenging Wike’s elections. Akeredolu alleged that the court bailiffs had visited Wike’s residence on multiple occasions to perform court service on him, but were all turned back at the gate by Wike’s security guards when it was discovered that he was a court bailiff.

The Court Order

Justice Pindiga then directed that substituted service be carried out against Wike, either by posting the court process at Wike’s residence, the Rivers State PDP secretariat, or in Abuja. On October 24, 2015, the Rivers State governorship election tribunal declared Wike’s election invalid. Thereafter, the election tribunal directed that the Rivers State governorship election be rerun within 90 days of the decision date. Then, Wike stated that he would challenge the tribunal’s decision.

Disagreement in accredited votes in Rivers Elections for Wike

The Election Tribunal was informed that the Independent National Electoral Commission in Rivers awarded Wike votes nearly five times higher than the actual, authentic total number of voters accredited with card readers and Permanent Voter Cards, which was 292, 878 for the Rivers gubernatorial election on April 11, 2015. On 13 April 2015, the Returning Officer for Rivers State, Osasere Orumwense, reported that Wike had received 1,029,102 votes, therefore winning the election.

However, the paper was signed by Ibrahim Bawa, the acting director in charge of INEC’s Legal Unit, and Abimbola Oladunjoye, the commission’s Information and Communication Technology Department’s head of the unit, Data Management. Wike received 1,029,102 votes, representing 87.77% of the total accredited voters, according to the results published by the Returning Officer for Rivers State, Osasere Orumwense, on April 13.

However, the tribunal was informed that the total number of accredited voters in Rivers according to INEC data given as court evidence was only 292, 878. Finally, on October 24, 2015, the River State governorship election tribunal declared Wike’s election invalid. The election tribunal ordered a repeat of the Rivers State governorship election within 90 days of the decision, causing outrage across the country over suspected partisanship and corruption in the judiciary.

2019 Re-Election

INEC pronounced Nyesom Wike the winner of the Rivers State governorship election on Wednesday, April 3, 2019. Wike took the oath of office on Wednesday, May 29, 2019, at Yakubu Gowon Stadium in Port Harcourt, kicking off his second term.
Afterwards, he ran for the People’s Democratic Party presidential ticket in May 2022 but was defeated by Atiku Abubakar. However, he is a great supporter of Sim Fubara, the PDP’s gubernatorial candidate.

His Tenure as Governor of Rivers State

During his term, Nyesom Wike saw some reforms in his state. Nyesom Wike declared public primary and secondary education free as part of his educational reform goals. He revealed this during a meeting at the government house in Port Harcourt on Monday, June 24, 2019. This was accompanied by both criticism and praise, the latter coming from parents and former state principals and headmasters. The Government of Wike, on the other hand, kept its position in the middle of the continual demur until they all disbanded. Wike declared free registration in the annual JAMB examination in 2019 through the State Ministry of Education. He also signed legislation strengthening women’s rights to inherit property into law in 2022.

Nyesom Wike’s Net Worth

Nyesom Wike’s net worth is currently estimated at $5 million.

Other Projects

During his second term as governor, he began construction on three major flyovers in Port Harcourt at the same time. The flyovers are located at Garrison, Rumoukoro, and Artillery.

Personal Life

Nyesom Wike is married to Eberechi Wike. Their union has produced 3 children.

Sources: Allfamousbirthday.com, Wikipedia