Politics
Dame Amaechi To Build Women Dev Centres In LGAs
Most activities in Government House last week was
centred around visits by wife of Rivers State governor, Dame Judith Amaechi to the various local government areas of the state.
Last week, Dame Amaechi covered about seven local governments for her empowerment programme. She was at Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area on Tuesday where she gave out various items to widows and women.
At Emohua on Wednesday, Dame Amaechi announced plans to build women development centres in the 23 local government areas of the state as part of her pet project. The Empowerment Support Initiative (ESI). She said the centres would be built in collaboration with development partners, stressing that they would create robust economy in the various communities.
“These centres are very imperative, we desire a centre that would be built by women, managed by women and utilized by women themselves, it would encourage rural dwellers at the local governments to develop their local economy in their area of comparative advantage”, she said
She further revealed that the centre would be built under the platform of Rivers State Women Association of Nigeria (RIVWAN) and will provide the enabling infrastructure and support for developing local content of our women.
The governor’s wife at the weekend visited Asari-Toru and Akuku-Toru local government areas. At Akuku-Toru, she urged the youth to shun all forms of social vices and embrace peace. She also urged them to exploit the educational and job opportunities the Amaechi-led administration has provided for youth all over the state. At Okirka, she held an interactive session with the youth and charged them to be good ambassador of their families.
“As youths, this is the time to determine your future, you must begin to build a personality of your dream, today, you have every opportunity to actualize your dream’s. put your priority right and God willing, your future is secured”, she stated.
Also within the week, Rivers State Governor through the Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Barrister Chuma Chinye, debunked claims that the state government was planning to sell Hotel Presidential in Port Harcourt.
In a press statement from the Ministry, the Commissioner said, the governor was misquoted as the state government has not contemplated selling the five star hotel, but would rather privatise it to improve its performance. The Commissioner cited the case of old Supabod that was privatized and is now being run by private company, SPAR. He also assured that soon, Delta Hotels would be privatized as a way of repositioning the state owned hotel.
At the weekend, Commissioner for Health, Dr. Sampson Parker, assured residents that the state government was doing all it can to ensure the deadly Ebola virus does not enter the state.
Dr. Parker in a press statement on Friday said, “Governor Amaechi has given us everything we need to fight Ebola Virus in Rivers state and has also assured me that should we need more personnel and material, the State would provide. However, I realize that this is a political season, but we as leaders must be responsible in our utterances so as not to cause unnecessary panic in our people”.
Dr. Parker lashed out at former Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives Austin Opara who in a radio comment accused the state government of not taking, Ebola virus spread seriously. Parker described Opara’s statement as “reckless, irresponsible, reresponsible and unfortunate”.
He said that the Rivers State Government was in touch with all agencies involved in the fight against Ebola within and outside Nigeria, including the centre for disease control (CDC), Atlanta and among university in the United States of America.
On Saturday, Chief of Staff Government House, Sir Tony Okocha responded to claims by Minister of State for Education, Anyesom Wike that the office of the Chief of Staff is dead.
Sir Okocha said Wike’s claim lacked any substantial logic as both persons did not exhibit the same “???? And style in office”. As far as he was concerned the office of Chief of Staff in Government House was still efficient and effective, as he does not blow his trumpet.
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.