Niger Delta

OBALGA CTC Chairman Clears Salary Arrears

Published

8 years ago

March 21, 2018

The Chairman, Caretaker Committee of Obio / Akpor Local Govemment Area of Rivers State, Chief Prince Noble Amadi has set the machinery in motion to tum around the fortunes of the local government in accordance with the directives and mandate of the Governor of the State, Chief Nyesom Wike.
Barely one week in office, the council secretariat in Rumuodomaya has once more become a beehive of activities as the CTC Chairman has taken bold steps to put smiles on the faces of the people of the local government including residents of the area.
Already, workers of the Local Government Council are now counting their blessings, as the current administration, going by the Governor’s directive has cleared the backlog of salary arrears owed them.
Besides, the caretaker committee has launched ‘Operation Keep Obio / Akpor Clean’ to ensure that all nooks and crannies of the local government are kept clean and environmentally healthy. And to truly empower the people, the local government boss has constituted an empowerrnent committee and equally ordered the reopening and reactivation of the Rumuepirikom Skills Acquisition Centre for sons and daughters of the area to acquire one skill or the other, particularly those of them who are not engaged in any meaningful venture.
One of the cardinal policies of the present caretaker committee is to rebrand the local government by sanitising the revenue collection mechanism which had in the past seemingly destroyed and tarnished the image of the local government. With dissolution of all functional committees including revenue committees in the local government, the caretaker committee chairman has swung into action to give revenue collection a human face, to the extent that fake revenue agents are now in for serious trouble. Indeed, he is redefining revenue collection in the local government.
The council has already banned illegal street trading, as it is liaising with Community Development Committees (CDCs) in the various communities to assist in this direction.
Already, the Rumuekini Community has provided a piece of land within the market axis of the community for the purpose of relocating those selling liquor around the Obiri Ikwerre axis of the East- West Road. The unwholesome activIties of some businessmen and women operating around this area have often defaced the Gateway local government area.
Moreover, by virtue of the open door policy adopted by the present administration, the caretaker committee is expected to reach out to all spectrum of the Obio / Akpor society with a view to giving all and sundry a sense of belonging, to the extent that at the expiration of its tenure, the people would be glad enough to say that they have never had it so good.
These were some of the insights the Chairman of the Caretaker Committee, Chief Prince Noble Amadi offered in an exclusive interview with The Tide in Port Harcourt recently. He said the overall vision of his government is to run an open door administration because as he put it, he is a servant of the people rather than a leader. “My appointment is a call to serve the people. I am not a leader. I am a servant of the Obio / Akpor people”.
He also revealed that going by the Govemor’s directive, workers of the council have been paid their salaries up to date.
“If you interview the workers, they will tell you that they are happy with His Excellency. That a caretaker committee chairman has come and carried out what the Governor said. I have told people that I must obey all the directives of the Govemor. I am not owing workers salaries. And I will never owe”, he said.
“On revenue collection, the council chairman noted that those doing business in the local government as well as those who own property are only permitted to pay Tenement Rate as approved by the Rivers State GovemmenL Now, what we intend doing is revenue collection with dignity. You don’t go and begin to beat people. We have said that anybody that rnasquerades as corning from the Chairman’s office or the council should be snapped. What we intend doing is to ensure that touting is reduced to the barest minimum,” he said.
Against thiS~drop, therefore, he directed the people to
send SMS to ~ 5%ia Mld 08Q5:9=7A;:H1e8or contact him as
soon as anybody comes to them to demand revenue, adding that security agents would not hesitate to arrest any fake revenue agent. “I have addressed all revenue officers and contractors of Obio / Akpor because I have dissolved all functional committees and all revenue committees. I have also asked them to apply. We will scrutinise. We will know where they live. They will give us two passport size photographs. And each of the revenue committees must work with the police. The essence of this is to get it right.
We don’t want to tarnish the image of the State,” he said.
Chief Amadi also stressed the need for people of the state to continue to support Governor Wike.
“The Governor has done a lot. If you travel from one local govemment to another, you will see roads, hospitals, bridges and a lot of what the Governor has done including human capacity development. In all the sectors, the Govemor has performed. That is why he has gotten lots of awards. I want to say that all Rivers people should support the Govemor for second term in office because Rivers State is POP. Obio/ Akpor is POP. Everybody should go and get his PVC. PVC gives you a voice in 2019”, he said.

Donatus Ebi

Niger Delta

CSOs, Bille Community Urge Solution To Persistent Underwater Gas Eruption

Published

3 days ago

April 10, 2026

The Tide

Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and the people of Bille Kingdom in Degema Local Government Area (LGA) of Rivers State have called for government’s urgent intervention to end the suspected underwater gas eruption in the community.

The groups, under the aegis of the Environmental Rights Action and Social Action, made the call during their advocacy visit to the Port Harcourt Zonal Head of the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), in Port Harcourt.

The Programme Manager of Environmental Rights Action, Mr. Kentebe Ebiaridor, said the visit was to seek clarity on the response efforts of the regulators to the development in the community.

Ebiaridor expressed concern over what he described as “inadequate response from regulatory agencies and the government concerning the incident”.

He said discussions with some officials revealed that there was still no clear timeline for action to address the situation.

According to him, in the absence of clear ownership of the facility linked to the incident, companies operating within Oil Mining Lease (OML) 18 should be held accountable.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) had in a statement issued on March 20 by its Chief Executive, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, said the commission had commenced an investigation into a gas bubbling incident in Bille Community.

Eyesan said the commission expressed concern over the development and assured residents of its ongoing efforts to address the situation.

Also, the Resource Justice Manager of Social Action, Dr. Prince Edegbuo, warned that the situation could escalate into a public health emergency, if urgent steps were not taken.

Edegbuo called on relevant authorities to release the results of the tests reportedly conducted in the area, stressing that residents had the right to know the condition of their environment.

He also said CSOs were prepared to intensify advocacy on the matter, urging the development of emergency response measures, including possible evacuation plans.

A legal practitioner and community stakeholder, Mr. Commission Deinbo, had, on March 20, said residents had continued to witness unusual signs on the waterways in the area.

Deinbo said the signs included boiling and bubbling from the ground and river, sometimes within residential areas, as well as fire outbreaks, which the residents had always managed to contain.

He appealed to relevant authorities to come to their aid and find a lasting solution to the problem.

In a response, the Port Harcourt Zonal Head of NOSDRA, Mr. Bello Augustin, assured the community that he would relate its concerns to the appropriate quarters.

Augustin also commended the CSOs for their advocacy and concerns to community development in the state.

By: Wokoma Emmanuel & Theresa Frederick

Niger Delta

Police Detain 7, Recover Arms In A’Ibom

Published

3 days ago

April 10, 2026

The Tide

The Police Command in Akwa Ibom State has detained seven suspects and recovered firearms after raiding a criminal hideout in Ndiya Mfia, Ikono Local Government Area.of the State.

The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Timfon John, made the disclosure in a statement in Uyo on Wednesday.

John said that the breakthrough which occurred at about 6.00a.m on Wednesday, followed credible intelligence from members of the public.

“We reliably gathered that criminal suspects were hibernating in a compound disguised as worshippers.

“In a decisive operation, our personnel conducted a thorough search of the premises which led to the detention and recovery of arms,” she said.

According to her, the operation was in line with the directive of the Inspector-General of Police to decisively combat crime in the country.

The police spokesman further said that two locally made double-barrel guns, five expended cartridges, four motorcycles and three generators were recovered during the operation.

She also listed 10 mobile phones, one police crest, four jungle boots, one peak cap, saw blade, spanner, number plates, machetes, a special force vest as other items recovered.

“We also found bottles of suspected spiritual oil and one enlarged photograph linked to an ongoing investigation,” she said.

John said that preliminary investigation suggested that the location was being used as cover for criminal operations.

She said the State’s Commissioner of Police, CP Baba Azare, has directed a comprehensive investigation on the matter in order to apprehend the principal suspect.

John expressed the commitment of the Command to rid the state of crime, and urged members of the public to always support the police with timely and credible information.

Niger Delta

Otu Launches Grassroot Security Network In C’River

Published

3 days ago

April 10, 2026

The Tide

Cross River State Governor, Bassey Otu, has launched a grassroots security intelligence network, named, ”Homeland Safety and Security Agency,” to strengthen community-based surveillance and enhance safety across the state.

Otu, who inaugurated the agency’s office in the Southern Senatorial District of the state on Monday, in Calabar, said similar offices were being inaugurated in the Central and Northern Senatorial Districts.

The Governor, represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr. Emmanuel Ironbar, said the officials of the agency would serve as first point of call before matters would be escalated to main security architecture in the state.

He described Homeland Security as an intelligence-driven structure focused on neighbourhood monitoring and early threat detection through coordinated local efforts.

He said the initiative constituted the directors and field operatives, tasked with gathering and forwarding intelligence to relevant security agencies for prompt action.

Otu noted that the network would serve as a first point of contact before intervention by conventional security agencies.

“It is important that we enhance monitoring of movements across our communities, border areas, and riverine zones to identify suspicious activities and enhance security response.

“The state government will provide necessary gadgets and communication tools to improve efficiency and real-time intelligence sharing,” he said.

Otu called for public cooperation, stressing that ‘’security is a collective responsibility requiring timely information from residents.’’

He said, ‘’to ensure that the security outfit works like a model unit, proper screening would be conducted on the volunteers to weed out undesirable elements from the system.’’

The Tide’s source reports that the Governor handed over 14 motor bikes to the agency’s southern Senatorial district office to enhance their efficiency.

On his part, the Director-General, South of the agency, Mr. Michael Nsan, said the volunteers had played key roles in reducing crime through coordinated patrols and intelligence sharing.

Nsan said over 1,300 volunteers currently supported the operations with additional informants providing critical information across communities.

“Crime rates dropped significantly during the last festive period due to our collaboration with law enforcement agencies in the state,” he said.

The Director-General said volunteers would undergo training and screening, with plans underway for formal recruitment through a government employment portal.

According to him, communication tools, including walkie-talkies, and patrol motorcycles had improved rapid response to security incidents.

He commended the governor’s commitment, noting that the initiative would further strengthen security architecture and community safety across the state.

The source reports that some of the dignitaries who graced the occasion were traditional rulers and government officials.