Politics
Gov Wike Receives Report On Police Brutality, Others
Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, last week, received the report from the Commission of Inquiry that investigated Human Right Abuses, Police Brutality and Extra-Judicial Killings by the disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in the state.
Chairman of the Commission, Justice Chukwunenye Uriri (rtd) submitted the report, last Friday, in Government House, Port Harcourt. He disclosed that the Commission received 190 petitions, out of which, 82 were struct out for lack of due deligence or jurisdiction and considered 108 of them.
Uriri remarked that the police officers who committed the crimes agaist Rivers people especially, Mr Akin Fakorede and his cohorts do not have any affinity with the state.
Governor Wike who commended the members of the Commission for their dedication and set up a five-member committee, mainly lawyers, from the State Executive Council to study the report and determine the content of a White paper , which would be considered in the next Executive Council meeting.
The Governor challenged the Inspector-General of Police and the Commissioner of Police in the state to implement the White paper as a proof that Federal Government was serious about ending police brutality in the country.
Also last week, the Rivers State Executive Council approved the construction of two new flyover Projects in Port Harcourt City.
The state Commissioner for Works, Eloka Tasie-Amadi, who briefed journalists after the Council meeting, last Wednesday, said the two projects woul cost the state N12.4 Billion .
The Commissioner stated that one of the flyover bridges is situated at the inter-section of Olu-Obasanjo and Port Harcourt Expressway popularly called, Waterlines Junction, while the second one is located at the inter-section of Olu-Obasanjo and Ikwerre Road, up to the Azikiwe Street in Diobu Area of the city.
The State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Paulinus Nsirim, remarked that the approval for the two additional flyovers was historic and had given further impetus to the urban renewal programme of the Wike administration.
Nsirim used the opportunity to announce the third phase of project inauguration scheduled to begin from the 1st March. According to him, list of the projects to be inaugurated would be made public in due course.
The Rivers State Chief Executive had warned that if the Nigerian Governors Forum went ahead to endorse fresh withdrawal of fund by the Federal Government from the Excess Crude Account, he would have no option than to contest it in court.
He questioned what happened to the $1Billion withdrawn from the account in 2017, on the stance that it would be used to fund the fight agaist Boko Haram insurgents in the North East.
Governor Wike declared his stand last Friday when the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero, paid him a courtesy visit in Government House Port Harcourt.
The Governor said he would not support the plan for any fresh withdrawal unless Rivers State was given her 13 per cent share from the account.
Wike who reminded the Emir of Kano how his late father and other leaders in their time were strongly committed to peace and national unity, expressed regret that the present political and religious leaders were not building on such successes.
He accused heads of security agencies, particularly the Inspector-General of Police of politicising security by posting Commissioners of Police to the state on orders of a politician in the ruling party.
The Emir had earlier, commended Governor Wike for the protective and fatherly role he had continued to play in this turbulent times of the nation’s history. He equally lauded the Governor for the giant strides recorded in all spheres of governance and urged other leaders to emulate him. him.
The Senate Chief Wipe and former Governor of Abia State, Chief Orji Uzor-Kalu was among top dignitaries who visited the Brick House, last week. Uzor-Kalu who inspected some projects in the state, praised Gov Wike for the infrastructural revolution in the state under his administration.
He described the Governmen House Hospital as second to none in the country and also expressed excitement over the flyover Bridges, Mother and Child Hospital, Real Madrid Academy.
“ All the facilities I have seen here is first class”, he said, and admired Gov Wike’s payment of 70 per cent to contractors upfront.
Also last week, the Brick House landlord released the sum of N400million for members of Ekporo community in Eleme Local Government Area for the rebuilding of the community and compensation to families fatally affected by inter communal clashes eight years ago.
Secretary to the State Government, Dr Tammy Danagogo, represented the Governor at the event.
By: Chris Oluoh
Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday brushed aside the order of the Court of Appeal in Abuja which ordered him to stay proceedings in a suit that sought deregistration of the African Democratic Party (ADC), Accord Party and three others.
The Court of Appeal in a unanimous decision of a panel of three Justices had on May 22, 2026 directed the Federal High Court Judge not to proceed with the suit until an appeal pending before them and filed by Accord Party is resolved.
In a Certified True Copy Enrol Order of the Superior Court, Justices Mohammed Danjuma, Adebukola Banjoko and Oyejoju Oyewumi asked the lower Court Judge to stay proceedings until all issues on the appeal filed by the Accord Party were resolved
Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State had, through the Accord Party, applied to justice Lifu to join him as a defendant in the deregistration legal battle instituted by a group of former legislators.
The contention of the Osun State governor was that he had a stake in the Accord Party, being the platform he was seeking re-election in the August 15 gubernatorial poll in the state.
In his ruling, Justice Lifu on April 27 ruled against the Osun State governor, rejecting his request to be joined in the suit to defend his own position and interest.
Not satisfied with the Federal High Court decision, the Osun State governor, through his lawyer, Musibau Adetunbi (SAN), moved to the Court of Appeal in Abuja where he challenged the Justice Lifu decision to refuse to allow him join the suit.
After listening to the argument canvassed, especially that he has interest to protect as Accord Party gubernatorial candidate for Osun State governorship election, the three Justices of the Court of Appeal, unanimously directed Justice Lifu to allow them look into the grievances of the governor.
In specific terms, the Court of Appeal Justices directed Justice Lifu not to proceed further with the matter and fixed October 27 to determine the interlocutory appeal of the appellant.
However, when the certified enroll order and notice of appeal were served on Justice Peter Lifu by Mr Adetunbi (SAN), the judge rejected it on the ground that it was a ploy to arrest his judgment in the matter.
Although the judge had adjourned his judgment delivery in the matter indefinitely, he finally made a dramatic turn around on Monday and proceeded to deliver the judgment that has now proscribed the five political parties.
Actor turned politician, Mr Kenneth Okonkwo, has rejected the choice of former Rivers State Governor, Mr Rotimi Amaechi, as the running mate to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in the 2027 presidential election on the platform of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
In a statement on Monday, Mallam Bolaji Abdulllahi, the National Publicity Secretary of the ADC, announced the party’s choice of Mr Amaechi.
However in a statement, Mr Okonkwo said that the choice of Mr Amaechi from the South South strengthens the continued marginalization of people from the South East.
According to the former spokesperson of the Labour Party, any arrangement that would not factor a person from the South East either as president or vice president in the party is anti-Igbo.
He contended that Chief Raph Nwosu, who founded the ADC in 2005 and willingly surrendered it’s leadership to Senator David Mark did not do so to entrench Igbo marginalization in the party.
The former actor said: “I heard from the social media that ADC has picked its vice presidential candidate from the South-South. If this is true, it is unfortunate, as this will continue the crude marginalisation of the South-East.
“This geo-political zone has neither produced a president or vice president since 1999. To deny the South-East the opportunity to produce the president or vice president in the ADC in 2027, will amount to perpetuating the marginalisation.
“The ADC was founded by Ralphs Nwosu from the South-East in 2005. He made the sacrifice to give up the party in 2025 for the coalition to usher in a better Nigeria. He couldn’t have made that sacrifice to marginalise his own people.
“I did not join the coalition to assist in marginalisation of my own people further. I am of the opinion that if we made a sacrifice to give up the national chairman and the president, it will amount to unpardonable injustice to deny us the vice president in 2027.
“I joined politics to fight for a better Nigeria where no region, geo-political zone, or person will be marginalised.
“The only favour I asked Atiku Abubakar, who openly declared that he is the pathway to the presidency of the South-East, is to show it by choosing someone from the South-East to be his vice.
“If it is confirmed that he has chosen a candidate from the South-South, I wish him well. I am not favourably disposed to campaigning for any presidential ticket that does not have a person of South-East origin as president or vice in 2027”
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, on Monday said that the numerous projects being executed by President Bola Tinubu across the states in the southeast will give him upper hand over other presidential candidates during next year’s general elections.
Prof. Yilwatda stated this at the Abakaliki Township Stadium during a mega rally organized by the Ebonyi State government and Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, during which President Tinubu and other APC candidates for the 2027 general elections were adopted.
According to the APC National Chairman, no President had done for the southeast region what President Tinubu has done for them and expressed the confidence that the president would not only win in Ebonyi State but in the entire South East.
Prof. Yilwatda also used the occasion to address growing insinuations in some quarters that Ebonyi State had been conceded to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Dismissing the claim, Prof. Yilwatda said the state would not allow the PDP to win any position in the forthcoming general election.
“We will return President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Francis Nwifuru as Governor of Ebonyi State in 2027.
“We want to return all APC senators, members of the House of Representatives and House of Assembly candidates in 2027.
“Nobody has conceded Ebonyi to the PDP. Therefore, there is no vacancy in Ebonyi State. Ebonyi PDP has no place, and there is no vacancy at all in the Government House come 2027,” the APC National Chairman declared.
He commended the people of the state for their support for President Tinubu and urged them to re-elect him in the next presidential election in appreciation of what he has done for the state and the entire South-East through infrastructural transformation and human capital development.
Governor Francis Nwifuru, who also spoke at the event, said the state had no other presidential candidate for the 2027 general elections apart from President Tinubu.
He declared that Ebonyi remained a stronghold of the APC and vowed that the party would deliver the President in the state.
Gov. Nwifuru said President Tinubu had shown exceptional commitment to the state and deserved total support for appointing Senator Umahi as Minister of Works, a role he said Senator Umahi had performed creditably.
“Ebonyi has no other presidential candidate apart from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and we will return him in the presidential election.
“We are standing here today to tell the whole world, especially those using the President’s name to orchestrate division and confusion in this great state, that we have only one party, and that is the APC.
“This statement became necessary because some people are going around claiming they have discussed with Mr President and that he has handed Ebonyi over to the PDP. They are also saying that Chief Nyesom Wike is their leader and that Wike said the President has given Ebonyi to him.
“Ebonyi is not for sale. We are restraining ourselves because the people are with us. Nobody should push us because we have what it takes to confront anyone trying to destabilise us.
“We want to tell Mr President that he has earned our votes. He gave us what we had never had in Eastern Nigeria — the office of the Minister of Works. And this Minister of Works is not sitting idle; he is working,” he stated.
Senator Umahi, in his remarks, said President Tinubu had done what no other President had done for Ebonyi State and the entire South-East by executing numerous projects across the state and the region.
“Ebonyi State is a one-party state under Governor Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru. We are not going to repeat the mistakes of the past.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has done a lot, not just for Ebonyi State but for the entire South-East and other geopolitical zones,” he said.