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Recreate Rivers Economy As Best Investment Destination, Fubara Charges RSIPA Board

Published

2 years ago

September 11, 2024

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has restated that the resolve is stronger now than ever to create the climate conducive for growth of agriculture, manufacturing, small and medium enterprises, and key services because they are the productive sectors that will put Rivers’ economy on a competitive pedestal.

The Governor, therefore, charged members of the maiden Governing Board of the Rivers State Investment Promotion Agency (GBoRSIPA) to streamline their activities in such a manner that will attract real investors across critical sectors so that the State can become self-sustaining, comparatively.

Governor Fubara gave the charge when he inaugurated members of the six-man Board at Government House in Port Harcourt on Monday.

Those inaugurated are: Lawrence Fubara Anga, SAN, as Chairman; Dr. Chamberlain Peterside as Director-General; and Mrs Tamunoibuemi Life-George, who is to serve as Secretary.

The rest include, Mr Goodliffe Nmekini, Barrister Havey Ideozu, and Baritor Lenusikpugi Kpagih as members.

Governor Fubara explained that Rivers State used to rank first in the comity of states in terms of productive economic activities, which attracted various business interests and made the State a well-groomed investment haven.

But, he expressed regret that the attendant expansion and population growth were not maximally managed because the challenges overwhelmed those who superintendent over business activities then, lamenting that the expected blessings were wrongly channelled, which left the State in very pitiable economic situation.

Governor Fubara said: “We might be celebrating, that yes, we have a very fat allocation. We have been able to improve our Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), but we still have a lot to do; and, that has to do with this agency.

“The purpose of this agency is to give our people – to assure them, that Rivers State can still come back to that enviable position that it once occupied. Those people that were doing business in Rivers State that left, for one reason or the other – that they can still come back.

“We want to see people who intend to come back and invest because Rivers State is blessed – it has oil, the most important item for development today, which is gas, in abundance.

“Look at what is happening in Trans-Amadi Industrial Layout: We can make Trans-Amadi Industrial Layout come back to what it used to be. We can develop the resources that we have in Onne Town. We have Ogba-Egbema gas hub. These are part of the promises we made during our campaigns, and we must fulfill those promises,” he said.

Governor Fubara emphasised that the agency is established to rigorously harness tenable economic and human potentials abundant in the State that can be translated into making Rivers the economic gateway and one-stop- shop for productive economic activities.

The Governor said: “We have waited for this moment for a long time. It is a moment we all have been praying for because we want to leave a State that will be remembered: Rivers State that can compete, and Rivers State that can stand the test of time as a proud State.

“People that are coming here would begin to know that Rivers State is now serious. Rivers State is not about coming here and saying I want to take the side of maybe, I am interested in 10 percent or 20 percent of what you are coming with, that is not the purpose now”.

He explained that Rivers State is about genuine business interactions that will be mutually beneficial to all parties in a sustainable way, insisting that investors desirous of gaining value from their stakes should boldly come to the State for partnerships that will work in the interest of all stakeholders.

He said, “The purpose is to build our State. The purpose is to grow this State economically in such a way and manner that even if we don’t get federal allocation anymore, for example, we can still sustain ourself (as a State) with our IGR.”

Governor Fubara acknowledged that in discharging its responsibilities, the Board will encounter challenges and stiff opposition from those who abhor change but urged the members to brace up and be forthright in their quest to achieve their mandate.

The Governor clarified that the board should not be preoccupied with people who are only interested in real Estate, which seemed to be the current drive now.

Governor Fubara said: “Not just issues of people coming to build houses and other things. I want your concentration to be more on agriculture, (manufacturing).

“Look to find people who are coming in to invest. People that are coming to build factories because it is only when we start production that employment issues will be resolved, (and we will witness economic boom).

“So, please, those things that will solve the problem of unemployment, and promote creation of wealth for the State should be your focus,” he advised.

Governor Fubara further said: “The responsibility of this agency is going to be very challenging because I know they will want to fight back. But, I know that these crop of men and woman have what it takes, and I am very convinced that they are going to lead Rivers State to where we want the State to be.

“The Chairman of this agency is a private legal practitioner and a businessman that has made his name. Let me say it here: let it be on record that I had to beg him to accept the offer. I even had to send emissaries to him to plead with him.

“He said he doesn’t want to get involved with any political thing. I said this is not about politics. You live in Lagos, you have made your name in Lagos. Please, come and help us. We need help, Rivers State needs to be salvaged.”

Governor Fubara charged them to approach their task with an open mind to make a difference, adding that he nurses no doubt that they will make the State proud with the results they will achieve.

The Governor also assured that his doors will remain open, should they require his attention to tackle any challenge in order to get the necessary support to ensure success.

In his acceptance speech, Chairman of the Governing Board of Rivers State Investment Promotion Agency (GBoRSIPA), Lawrence Fubara Anga, SAN, said they consider their appointment as an opportunity to serve among other Rivers people who are willing to be so appointed.

Anga noted the enormity of the task before them but expressed appreciation that even the Governor understands it so, which is why he consulted widely to gather very distinguished, proven and tested personalities, who depict his foresight.

He said: “Your Excellency, we have heard, listened very attentively to your charge, and that charge resonates, I believe, with everybody in this room.

“This is the time, whether we like it not, to many people, it is a time to want to despair. It is a time of problems, and it is also a time of challenges. And everybody has an option: your cup can either be half-full, or half-empty.

“But Your Excellency has decided that the cup of Rivers State shall be completely full. For every challenge, there is an opportunity. And what His Excellency has done is to tell us: go and look for those opportunities.”

Anga reaffirmed that Rivers State, known and still is the ‘Treasure Base of the Nation’, noting that the charge before them is to make that appellation march the reality of what prevails, desirably.

The chairman assured that they shall offer their best by delivering on their mandate but solicited support to work in strong synergy with other organs: ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) of government, to succeed.

This, he noted, will reduce unhealthy competition and bureaucratic bottlenecks that often frustrate genuine development efforts because of what he described as likely policy inconsistencies.

He said, “The charge is to restore it (State) to be the ‘Treasure Base of the Nation. The charge is to make Rivers State economy probably the 10th or 12th largest economy in Africa, standing on its own. The charge is to turn Rivers State into the Dubai of Africa. That is what you have told us to do.

“It is not going to happen overnight. It is not going to happen just through us as individuals. It is a collective effort. But, we are convinced that with your support, and with the kind of leadership that you have already provided, it is very possible in the shortest period of time to start the transformation to change the narrative. And once the ship has left the port, nobody can stop it.”

Anga further said: “Your Excellency, investors’ monies have choices. No matter how potentially attractive a business proposition is, where there is insecurity, where there is confusion, where there is bureaucratic bottleneck, investors will run away because they have choices.

“And, one of the things your administration is trying to do is to restore security, safety of lives and property; security of tenor, when you buy land, you know that your title is secured because without security of tenor, you can’t get a loan.

“These are the things your administration is doing, which will go a long way to achieving the goal you have set. I am happy, this is a brand new agency, and we don’t have any excuse. What comes out; we are the ones that will shape it,” he emphasised.

Anga also reassured that: “This board will try its best to provide oversight. This board will try and provide the policy guidance. This board will try and use the rich connections it has to reach out locally and internationally (to attract investments).

“But, in all of these, our youths should stop being applicants. We want to create an environment where the unemployed become entrepreneurs, they become employers of labour. We want to triple the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the State from our home grown businesses.

“We are not just looking for people to bring their money from outside. It’s been proven time and again that if the owners of the place don’t invest, outsiders will not come to invest. And so, your charge to us is to make Rivers State attractive for Rivers people. And when Rivers people invest, the whole world will come and invest. That is our task, and we will strive to achieve it,” he assured.

Featured

RSG Floats MNET Culture Content Promo

Published

6 days ago

November 6, 2026

The Tide

The Rivers State Ministry of Culture and Tourism has floated a culture content platform in collaboration with digital television group, Multichoice.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Freddy Ndigbara, disclosed this after a meeting with MultiChoice Head of Content Acquisition, Don Dotun Ojon, in Port Harcourt.

He assured that content entrepreneurs and film makers would enjoy the platform by promoting culture and other contents to sell the states tourism potentials.

He said MultiChoice M-net was now open to increase its patronage for content shots on locations in Rivers State, describing the State as one that has numerous potentials for film tourism.

“We were privileged to have Don Ojon with us at the Rivers International Film Festival (RIFF) at the weekend in Bonny and he saw, first hand, the numerous sites and opportunities that are open to creatives in the State. After that, we felt it was important to deepen the conversation and he obliged. This is a cheering news for the sector in the State,” he said.

Ndigbara stated that “Rivers State has many more untold stories to tell, many more contents to reel out and the assurances from the M-net Acquisition Manager is an indication that the industry in the state will soon enjoy a new lease of life”.

The Permanent Secretary thanked Ojon for the visit and assured that creatives in the State would grap this opportunity and show the world that Rivers State is a major hub for film tourism in Nigeria.

On his part, Ojon said the visit was to discuss on ways of promoting tourism in the State using creatives and film.

Ojon said although the company has recently been acquired by canal+ France and is undergoing restructuring, he would promote the chances of Rivers State to host the MultiChoice talent factory in the State.

With Asaba, capital of Delta State, being saturated, Ojon said the next port is Rivers State, which he said is capable of building fresh crop of creatives, new locations, new story lines and concepts.

He, therefore, called for collaboration from stakeholders in the State.

Kevin Nengia

Featured

APC Presidential Campaign Storms PH, ‘Morrow

Published

6 days ago

November 6, 2026

The Tide

Barring last minute changes, the presidential campaign train of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will storm Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, tomorrow.

This is according to a campaign timetable released by the APC Campaign Council last month.

The Tide reports that the APC presidential campaign kicked off in Kaduna on October 24 with President Bola Tinubu in attendance.

The campaign train later moved to Cross River, Gombe, Nasarawa, and Ekiti on November 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively with the Vice President, Kashim Shettima representing the President at the rallies.

President Tinubu is personally scheduled to attend 12 states including Rivers, Kaduna, Plateau, Oyo, Borno, Enugu, Bauchi, Sokoto, Delta, Kano, Adamawa and Lagos.

The Rivers State rally, scheduled to hold at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Port Harcourt, is expected to witness a large crowd of party supporters drawn from a coalition of political parties in the State.

The party is expected to round off its presidential campaign in Lagos State on January 9, 2027.

The Tide reports that Tinubu has not visited Rivers State as President since he assumed office in May 2023. His last physical visit to the State was before his inauguration on Wednesday, May 3 – Thursday, May 4, 2023, when he was hosted by then Governor Nyesom Wike in Port Harcourt to commission the Rumuola/Rumuokwuta Flyover and the Magistrates’ Court Complex.

Tomorrow’s visit will be his first to the State since assuming office.

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2027: Be Politically Neutral, Fubara Tasks Traditional Rulers

Published

2 weeks ago

October 30, 2026

The Tide

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has charged traditional rulers in the State to maintain neutrality, ensure fairness and uphold peace in their domains as the country prepares for the 2027 general elections.

Fubara gave the charge on Wednesday while declaring open the 126th, 127th and 128th Combined Quarterly Meeting of the Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council, in Port Harcourt.

The governor said the primary function of traditional rulers is to administer justice and ensure fairness, saying their conduct must not lead to division and unmanageable crises.

“Let me therefore, request, if that is the right word to use, that please, as we are entering into this political season actively, everyone should ensure that your conduct promoted peace in your place. Your actions should not be what would lead to the division and multiple crisis that we cannot manage as a government.

“I think with that, we can all live as one and we can also continue to make this progress that we are trying with all our mind, our body and our soul, to ensure that we deliver to our dear State,” he said.

Fubara urged the royal fathers to abide by the oath and constitution they swore to before ascending their respective stools, in the interest of stability and progress of the State.

He also enjoined them to set aside individual sentiments and place the interest of Rivers State above personal considerations, noting that this principle has guided his own day-to-day governance of the State.

“I want to enjoin everyone to keep aside issues of individual sentiments and ensure that the interest of our state supersedes whatever thing that we have in our mind. This is not just what I’m saying here, it is what I’ve also practiced and displayed in my day-to-day life in the governance of our dear State,” he said.

On the appeal for improved welfare for traditional rulers, the governor clarified that the delay in actualising some of the requests they made in the past was not from the government but from the inability of the Council to put its house in order.

Fubara explained that the issue of stipends paid to the traditional rulers by the local government councils, was a statutory benefit provided for in the constitution and not what a state governor can change by mere verbal pronouncements.

He assured that he remains a man of his word and will fulfill his promises to the traditional rulers before leaving office, next year.

He reaffirmed his respect for the traditional institution as custodians of culture and the closest link to the people, thanking them for their prayers and support.

The governor urged the royal fathers to ensure that the combined quarterly meeting featured fruitful deliberations that will strengthen peace and development in the State.

Earlier, the Chairman of the Rivers State Council of Traditional Rulers and Paramount Ruler of Apara Kingdom, His Royal Majesty, Eze Chike Amadi Worlu Wodo, expressed profound gratitude to the State Government for its efforts in maintaining a cordial relationship with the traditional institution.

Wodo highlighted the importance of traditional rulers in conflict resolution, noting that their closeness to the people places them in a strategic position to mediate in disputes involving chieftaincy matters, family disputes and land ownership in their respective communities.

The royal father drew the attention of the State Government to some challenges affecting the performance of the traditional institution, particularly the lack of official utility vehicles and logistical support needed to discharge its responsibilities effectively.

He also appealed for improved monthly stipends and better welfare provisions to reflect prevailing economic realities.