Wike, Man With Heart Of Gold – Banigo …Warns Against Encroachment On Disputed Lands

The Rivers State Deputy Governor, Dr. Ipalibo Harry Banigo has described Governor Nyesom Wike as a man with a heart of gold.
Banigo stated this at the Government House in Port Harcourt in reaction to the governor’s physical presence at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport and the Presidential Villa in Abuja to receive President Muhammadu Buhari on his return from medical vacation in the United Kingdom.
The deputy governor said “contrary to erroneous belief in some quarters that the state chief executive holds animosity against the president, the governor has no personal problems with him. It is Governor Wike’s fierce defence of the interest of Rivers People that is often misconstrued by those who do not mean well for the state as fighting with the president”.
She said although a lot of people were pleasantly surprised to see Wike at the airport and the Villa to welcome the president, but quickly added that those who were close to the governor know how compassionate he was, especially when it comes to the issue of health.
Banigo, who expressed gratitude to the governor for reinstating the Chairman, Caretaker Committee of Ogu/Bolo Local Government Area, Mrs. Mary Minaseichinbo to her position said she was the only female CTC chairman representing the women for now.
She urged Rivers women to continue to support the governor, and advised the Ogu/Bolo caretaker committee chairman to justify the confidence reposed in her by delivering democratic dividends to the people of her local government area.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State Deputy Governor, Dr. Ipalibo Harry Banigo says stern disciplinary measures will be meted out against those who illegally encroach into disputed territories under the arbitration of the State Boundary Commission.
The deputy governor stated this when members of the State Boundary Commission visited the site to ascertain the veracity of claims of encroachment by one of the parties in the land dispute between Norkpo in Tai and Ogu in Ogu/Bolo local government areas of the state.
Banigo, who spoke through Dr. Silas Eneyo disclosed that the visit was necessitated by reports of encroachment into the disputed territory despite government’s intervention.
She said entry into the disputed area by the parties when the commission has intervened in the matter was against the State Boundary Act, stressing that severe sanction awaits any party that flouts the no-entry order.
Banigo, who reiterated the benefits of peaceful coexistence amongst communities, assured the parties of the Governor Nyesom Wike-led government’s commitment to resolving boundary disputes without prejudice.
Also speaking, the Chairman, CTC Tai, Sylvester Ngba and the Chairman, CTC, Ogu/Bolo, Mary Minaseichinbo, who expressed confidence in the commission’s ability to adjudicate the matter, promised to keep the peace in their respective local government areas.