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Let’s Use Politics To Develop Rivers -Fubara …Inaugurates Okocha Road, Spurs In Obio/Akpor
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has given sound technical advice to politicians to stop restricting politics and its associated engagements to only satisfying private or sectional interests but to advance the general welfare and development needs of the people.
Governor Fubara gave the advice at the inauguration of Okocha Road and Spurs in Rumuolumeni Community, which took place at Okocha Road Junction, Nkpor Road, Rumuolumeni in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the State, last Tuesday.
He explained that the benefits of politics and focus of government should not only be to identify supporters from non-supporters for accruable favours but to also sincerely address the needs of the people.
Governor Fubara said, “My advice is: politics is not all about who is supporting you or who is against you. Politics should also include attending to the needs of the people. At this time, if I was an evil person, I would say, ‘I wouldn’t come here’, considering the nature and the location of this place.
“But, because it is our duty in government to provide services, protect lives and property, we have to come to make sure that our people here are happy. It is not about me. It is about the government. Government should be caring. The purpose of government is to put smiles on the faces of our people.”
Providing a background to the project, Governor Fubara explained that after the Presidential Election in 2023, there was need to assuage the heightened anxiety among supporters in the area in order to secure favourable votes for his governorship election.
Governor Fubara stated: “We needed to do everything to make sure that we were very comfortable in my own election. The people of this community are majorly visitors, and this community has a very big voting strength.
“Our supporters, at that time, approached them, spoke to them, and they saw reasons to support us in our election. So, what I am doing here today is to say ‘thank you’ for believing in us.
“Thank you for supporting us. Thank you for also standing by us. The little we can do is to make your lives better, which is why this road is very significant to us because it removes tears from the faces of the people living here.
“It was a terrible road. The living condition here was unimaginable, but to the glory of God today, those things are now history. You can see joy on the faces of the people here. Moreover, the residents who are majorly non-indigenes are also happy.”
Governor Fubara assured that his administration will address the other requests made on behalf of the community by the Chairman of the Local Government Council, stressing that immediate action will be taken to attend to the other adjoining streets in deplorable situation to make them motorable.
He also directed the Commissioner for Education to immediately visit the Community Secondary School in the area and take necessary steps to ensure a reconstruction that will accommodate more students.
While assuring the people that his administration will continue to work for the betterment of Rivers people, Governor Fubara urged them to be peaceful, obey the laws, and stay out of trouble while doing the right thing always.
Governor Fubara stated that the people of Obio/Akpor will in a few days see the inauguration of the very important Okania/Ogbogoro Road project, saying: “We are not ending there. We are already at the roofing stage of what will be the first General Hospital in Obio/Akpor Local Government.
“You also have a modern Psychiatric Hospital to address issues of mental illness, drug abuse and provide other services that will be available there. So, you can see that our projects are not limited to roads, but to other things that will bring better life to our people,” he added.
Performing the inauguration, former lawmaker representing Rivers East Senatorial District, Senator John Azuta-Mbata, stated that Governor Fubara is the king in the hearts of Rivers people that he has incubated with his humane leadership, saying, “Our people gravitate towards you effortlessly. Despite the vicissitude and the vagaries of the politics of our State, you have continued to perform your duty and do your job.
“You have continued to implement projects. You have refused to be distracted by all the legal and political unrighteousness. Government of Rivers State, under your able leadership, has proven once more that you are committed and that you are dedicated to doing all that is within your power to ensure that the welfare and security of our people is guaranteed.”
Providing the project description, Commissioner for Works, Barrister Elloka Tasie-Amadi, said the 1.55km Okocha Road and 405 meters Spurs is 7 meters wide with 2.7km of drains, adding that the road, strategically located between Nkpor and Aker Roads, leads to the Trans-Kalabari Road now under construction.
In his welcome address, Chairman, Obio/Akpor Local Government Council, Amb. Chijioke Ihunwo, thanked Governor Fubara for reconstructing the once impassable road, which has ended the nightmare experienced by the people, and appealed to the Governor to consider reconstructing some dilapidated adjoining roads and the community secondary school to accommodate more students.
Speaking for the contracting firm, Head of Civil Works, Jemajo and Magene Nigeria Limited, Engr Princewill Agim, expressed gratitude to Governor Fubara for trusting them with the job as an indigenous company, adding that the project was built to last with functional drains.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted 1.63 million pills of tramadol concealed in two long trailers heading for Kano as it intensified efforts to dismantle a transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria corridor.
The agency also arrested an 80-year-old suspected drug dealer in Rivers State, a businesswoman linked to cannabis shipments from Canada, a Chadian woman, a couple and other suspects in coordinated operations across Lagos, Edo, Kogi and Rivers states.
The NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement, yesterday.
According to the statement, the latest intelligence-led operation came barely one week after NDLEA operatives recovered 558,900 pills of tramadol concealed in the false-bottom compartment of a truck that entered Lagos through the Togo-Benin Republic route.
Babafemi said, “Ongoing efforts to dismantle a transnational drug trafficking syndicate smuggling tramadol from Togo, through Benin Republic into Nigeria have yielded another success with the interception of two long trailers used to move One Million Six Hundred and Thirty (1,630,000) pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in fabricated compartments of the trucks across multiple borders into Lagos.”
He added that one of the two trailers was intercepted on July 2 along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, where operatives recovered 853,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor.
Babafemi said, “One of the two trucks already heading to Kano was tracked and located on 2nd July 2026 along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway where NDLEA officers recovered 853,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor of the trailer and arrested the 22-year-old driver Jabir Kabiru.”
He further disclosed that another trailer was intercepted two days later on the same route.
“Two days later, 4th July, NDLEA operatives acting on processed intelligence successfully tracked and recovered the second trailer from the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway while heading to Kano. A total of 777,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor of the truck were evacuated and the 22-year-old driver Muhammed Nuhu arrested,” the statement read.
According to Babafemi, investigations established a link between the three intercepted consignments.
He said, “Investigations revealed that all three trucks and consignments intercepted on 21st June, 2nd July and 4th July belong to the same transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria axis.”
The agency also intercepted 4.70 kilograms of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
Babafemi said, “Two consignments of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, with a combined weight of 4.70 kilograms have been intercepted at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos. The cargoes, which arrived the Lagos airport from Canada in cartons with ‘Odugwu’ boldly written on them, came aboard British Airways and Ethiopian Airlines flights on 24th June and 3rd July respectively.”
He said two cargo agents, Ali Rotimi Samson and Orimolade Oluwagbenga, were initially arrested in connection with the shipments, while another suspect, Edeh Onyeamachi Stanislus, was apprehended after arriving at a logistics company to take delivery of the consignments.
The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction has denied claims that it has commenced registration for a purported ?50,000 National Support Allowance.
The ministry, in a public notice posted on its official X handle, yesterday, described messages, links and websites advertising the alleged programme as fraudulent.
It urged Nigerians to disregard such claims and verify information only through official government channels.
“The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction has NOT commenced registration for any ?50,000 National Support Allowance,” the ministry said.
It added, “Disregard fraudulent messages, links and websites claiming otherwise. Verify any info only through official govt channels.”
The alert is in response to a circulating scam flyer that falsely claims the program is ongoing under President Bola Tinubu’s directives.
The fake advertisement, which includes text in Hausa and English, directs victims to a suspicious website (kluspz.com) for applications.
The ministry’s warning comes amid heightened concerns over digital fraud targeting vulnerable populations seeking social support.
Similar scams have previously surfaced around programs like N-Power, prompting questions from citizens in replies to the official post.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has expressed its preparedness for a major national struggle for a comprehensive review of the national minimum wage.
NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, hinted at this while making his remarks at the commissioning of the Comrade Godwin Abumisi Pensioners Legacy House and Multipurpose Hall in Abuja.
Ajaero said it is no longer acceptable to discuss the welfare of workers without also discussing the welfare of those who have completed their active years of service.
He advised workers and pensioners to get prepared for the ideological and economic battles that lie ahead.
According to the NLC president, “The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) is one of the proud affiliates of the Nigeria Labour Congress. Therefore, your struggle is our struggle, and your welfare remains a priority for the organised labour movement.
“We are currently in the preparatory stages for a major national struggle for a comprehensive review of the national minimum wage.
“However, let me state unequivocally that it is no longer acceptable to discuss the welfare of workers without also discussing the welfare of those who have completed their active years of service.
“Accordingly, the Nigeria Labour Congress will not only push for a new national minimum wage but will also demand the establishment of a national minimum pension. It is a historical injustice that men and women who devoted their youth, strength and productive years to the service of this nation should be condemned to live below the poverty line after retirement.”
Ajaero noted that the cost of living has risen astronomically as food, healthcare and transportation have become increasingly unaffordable.
“We cannot continue to allow our senior citizens to survive on pensions that have become poverty wages. Every retiree deserves to live with dignity after decades of faithful service to the nation,” he said.
He urged pensioners across the country to remain united and prepared as the process begins, adding: “This Legacy House should not merely be seen as a physical structure; it should become a centre for mobilisation, strategic engagement and solidarity as we prepare for the struggles ahead.”
The NLC president pointed out that the working class has always understood that “those who exploit workers are united in advancing their interests. We too must remain united in defending our collective interests and ensuring that government fulfils its obligations to both serving workers and retirees.”
He urged pensioners across the country to remain united and prepared as the process begins, adding: “This Legacy House should not merely be seen as a physical structure; it should become a centre for mobilisation, strategic engagement and solidarity as we prepare for the struggles ahead.”
The NLC president pointed out that the working class has always understood that “those who exploit workers are united in advancing their interests. We too must remain united in defending our collective interests and ensuring that government fulfils its obligations to both serving workers and retirees.”
He said the completion of the project should serve as a clarion call to all workers and lovers of the masses.
“We must not only build physical structures but also build a strong movement capable of compelling government to honour its commitments,” he said.
Ajaero further stated: “We will continue to demand the immediate payment of all outstanding pension arrears and the implementation of a pension regime that guarantees every retiree a life of dignity and security.
“Together, we shall continue to fight until every Nigerian worker and pensioner receives the justice, respect and welfare they deserve.”