Politics

Speaker Harps On Good Conduct

Published

9 years ago

August 14, 2017

The Rivers State House of Assembly (RVHA) held only one Plenary Session last week.
The Session which was held last Tuesday at the hallowed chamber of the Assembly commenced with the consideration of two separate letters sent to the House by the Governor of the state, Chief Nyesom Wike.
The letters which were read by the Speaker of the Assembly Rt Hon Ikuinyi-Owaji Ibani requested the confirmation of Commissioner-nominees submitted to the House in line with Section 192 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
Ibani also reads a letter requested the approval of the House for the state Governor to appoint 23 Special Advisers pursuant to Section 196 of the 1999 Constitution as amended.
However, the Assembly confirmed all the nominees after grilling them one after the other.
The House also screened and confirmed a one time commissioner in the state, Rodaford LongJohn, whose name was later added to the pack on the floor of the House.
The Assembly further gave its nod to the Governor’s request to appoint 23 Special Advisers to assist him in the running of the affairs of the state.
The commissioner nominees, who made the list include Barrister Emma Okah, Charles Nwogu, Walter Ibibia, Dr Tamunosis Gogo-Jaja, Ukel Oyaghiri and Isaac Kamalu.
The rest are Damiete Albert Miller, Boma Iyaye, Emeka Onowu, Prof Princewill Chike, Elder Tasie Chinedu Nwobueze, Barrister Sylvanus Nwankwo and Kaniye Ebeku.
Meanwhile, Okah, Ibibia, Oyaghiri and Kamalu were former Commissioners for Housing, Water Resources, Women Affairs and Budget and Economic Planning respectively.
Similarly, Ebeku, Iyaye, Miller and Onowu were also in Wike’s former Cabinet.
Speaking after the confirmation session, the Speaker said the lawmakers acted in compliance with the provision of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
He directed the Clerk of the House, Chief Standford Oba to forward letters of confirmation and approval to the office of the state Governor for Swearing-in.
At the same plenary, Ibani warned that the Assembly leadership would no longer tolerate unguarded utterances of any member likely rubbish the name of the 8th Assembly in the state.
He said, the House by next its plenary session, will restructure House Committee on Ethics and privileges to carry out its over-sight function on any member who drags the name of the Assembly in the mud.
Last Friday, the House Committee on Information denied allegations by an APC Chieftain in Emohua Local Government Area, Mr Mtata Mtata that each PDP member in the Assembly collected N30 million from Governor Nyesom Wike to clear the 13 Commissioner-nominees recently screened in the House.
The Chairman of the Committee, Hon Samuel Ogeh said the insinuation was baseless and larked substance.
Ogeh, who also the lawmaker representing Emohua Constituency said Mtata should not be taken seriously, explaining that the APC Chieftain was only making nosie to make himself relevant to APC leadership.
He said there was no time any member of the legislative arm collected money from any person to screen and clear any appointee by the state governor.
The Assembly’s Information Chairman further explained that screening and confirmation of nominees are statutory legislative that do not require financial inducement of any kind.
According to him, the Commissioner-nominees were duly screened in accordance with the provision of the law and the House was divided with majority of the lawmakers including APC lawmakers to confirm and clear the nominees as commissioner designates.
He called on the general public to disregard the allegation, saying the APC leader in Emohua does not understand anything about legislative business.

Enoch Epelle

Politics

Tinubu Flags Off 2027 Re-election Campaign In Kaduna

Published

15 hours ago

October 26, 2026

The Tide

President Bola Tinubu, on Saturday, launched the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign in Kaduna State, beginning the ruling party’s mobilisation for the 2027 general elections.

The campaign rally, held at the Kaduna Township Stadium, attracted Vice-President Kashim Shettima, APC governors, party leaders, federal and state lawmakers, political stakeholders and supporters from across the country.

The flag-off marks the beginning of the APC’s drive to secure a second presidential term for President Tinubu, with the party expected to promote its achievements, defend its economic reforms and outline its policy priorities under the proposed Renewed Hope 2.0 agenda.

Kaduna’s selection for the campaign launch underscores the strategic importance of the North-West, a region with a substantial voting population and considerable influence on presidential election outcomes.

The APC faces a significant challenge in Kaduna, where the Peoples Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, defeated President Tinubu in the 2023 election. The rally therefore provides the ruling party an opportunity to strengthen its grassroots structures and regain electoral support in the state.

Addressing supporters, Vice-President Shettima appealed to Northern voters, highlighting President Tinubu’s political relationships with prominent Northern leaders, including Alhaji Abubakar, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu and the late President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Vice-President’s appeal reflects the APC’s determination to consolidate its support in the North as the party intensifies preparations for the presidential contest.

The Renewed Hope 2.0 agenda is expected to feature prominently in the campaign, providing a platform for President Tinubu to explain his administration’s economic policies and outline plans for another term.

However, the President’s record on economic reforms, rising living costs, petrol prices, employment, infrastructure and insecurity is expected to attract considerable scrutiny during the electioneering period.

Politics

LP ASSEMBLY CANDIDATE WELCOMES POLITICAL RECONCILIATION IN KELGA

Published

15 hours ago

October 26, 2026

The Tide

The Labour Party (LP) standard-bearer for Ikwerre State Constituency in Rivers State, Hon. Stasi Amadi, has described the ongoing political reconciliation in Ikwerre Local Government Area as a welcome development capable of promoting unity, understanding and peaceful coexistence among political stakeholders.

Hon. Amadi stated this while speaking with newsmen in the area at the weekend, noting that genuine reconciliation remained necessary for strengthening relationships among political leaders and creating an atmosphere conducive for democratic participation.

She said the reconciliation initiative was borne out of goodwill and should not be interpreted as a setback for the Labour Party’s determination to win the Ikwerre State Constituency seat and bring positive changes to the people of the area.

According to her, the party remained committed to its political aspirations and would continue to mobilise support among the electorate through constructive engagement, people-oriented programmes and a determination to provide effective representation.

Hon. Amadi observed that the Rainbow Coalition was a broad political platform capable of accommodating different interests and tendencies, expressing optimism that the arrangement could provide opportunities for participating political parties to secure elective positions.

The LP candidate said the coming together of political brethren should be celebrated rather than criticised, adding that reconciliation would be more beneficial if it encouraged mutual respect, cooperation and a shared commitment to the development of Ikwerre Local Government Area.

She maintained that the leadership of the Rainbow Coalition was focused on achieving positive changes for the people, stressing that the LP would not abandon its political principles or aspirations because of the ongoing reconciliation process.

According to her, political unity should not prevent individual parties from pursuing their legitimate electoral ambitions, but should, instead, encourage healthy competition, issue-based campaigns and a collective commitment to the welfare of the electorate.

Hon. Amadi said the people of Ikwerre deserved a political environment where leaders prioritised development, improved living conditions, employment opportunities and effective representation rather than allowing political differences to undermine the common interest.

She also called on the police and other relevant security agencies to deploy adequate tactical intelligence before, during and after the 2027 general elections to prevent security breaches and ensure that the electoral process was peaceful and credible.

The LP standard-bearer urged security agencies to remain professional, impartial and vigilant in the discharge of their responsibilities, particularly in identifying potential threats, preventing political violence and protecting voters, electoral officials and other stakeholders.

Hon. Amadi expressed hope that the reconciliation among political stakeholders would strengthen democratic participation in Ikwerre Local Government Area, while assuring the electorate that the LP remained determined to contest the forthcoming election and pursue a positive political future for the people.

By: King Onunwor

Politics

2027: DICKSON’S EX-ALLY VOWS TO WORK AGAINST NDC INTEREST IN BAYELSA

Published

15 hours ago

October 26, 2026

The Tide

A former ally of Senator Seriake Dickson, the National Leader of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Hon. Godpower Keku, has vowed to work against the interest of his erstwhile political leader and kinsman in the 2027 general elections.

Hon. Keku also faulted the duo of former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and former governor of Anambra State, Mr Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), over their consistent presidential ambitions.

Hon. Keku, who is the Commissioner for Culture in Bayelsa State, served as Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the State during Senator Dickson’s tenure as governor of the state.

The Tide further gathered that Hon. Keku hails from the same State Constituency, local government area, and Senatorial District as Senator Dickson.

He described Mr Obi as a destroyer of political parties and alleged that the NDC’s presidential candidate does not build parties, but instigates problems and backs out of them when internal wranglings become aggravated to the detriment of any party he belongs to.

According to him, politicians should be grateful to their political parties and remain consistent to avoid being stereotyped as untrustworthy and disloyal members in order to grow politically.

He also alleged that the National Leader of the NDC once affirmed that he would not field a presidential candidate for the party in the 2027 polls, saying Senator Dickson had been reported to have said, during the initial stages of formalizing the registration of his party, that he was only interested in producing Assembly and governorship candidates prior to the entrance of Mr Obi and Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso into the NDC.

The ex-PDP scribe, who described himself a “party man”, restated his loyalty to the Governor Douye Diri-led leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state and vowed to deliver all candidates of the party in his constituencies.

“I wonder why Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar still want to contest this election. In fact, Obi is the easiest to win in this election. And I’m begining to suspect that it’s either he is a friend of President Tinubu or he is an enemy. One of these two things must be factual, if not why is he still contesting in the 2027 polls?

“What surprises me most in Obi’s behaviour is the way and manner he destroys political parties with his over- ambitious political interest. After destroying one party he quickly moves to another without helping to rebuild the party he helped destroy.

“My brother and friend, Senator Dickson said he wasn’t interested in fielding presidential candidate for the NDC prior to the registration of Obi and Kwankwaso as members of the NDC.

“Dickson had also said he was only going to field States, National Assembly and governorship candidates in the NDC and work with President Tinubu before the entrance of Obi and Kwankwaso into the NDC”, he said.

“For Atiku, he should remember that it’s the turn of the South to complete their eight years of two terms. Buhari, a Northerner just completed eight years of two terms before handing over to President Tinubu, a Southerner.

Speaking on the performance of the Bayelsa State governor, the Commissioner boasted about the achievements of Governor Diri’s administration, stating that the infrastructural and human capital development projects of the governor would campaign for the APC and ensure victory for the party in the forthcoming elections.

“I’m a party man, and even my brother and friend, Senator Dickson would attest to that fact. I don’t betray and don’t relent in my support for any party I belong to. The APC is my party and Dickson is an NDC member. I can’t work for him or any candidate of his party. I have my integrity and interest to protect as a party man.

“We’ll deliver all APC candidates in my political enclave, because, like I said earlier, Dickson himself knows me as a party man”, he stressed.

By: Ariwera Ibibo-Howells