Editorial
That Mgbuoshimini Killings
On Monday last week, residents of Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital woke up to the ugly news of the massacre of no fewer than 15 innocent people by suspected cultists in Mgbuoshinini Community in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the State.
This latest round of killings in the community brings to 22 the number of persons murdered in cold blood since May, this year. Chief Minikwu Chukwu, Secretary of the Rumueme Council of Chiefs and one Optimist Jaja were killed in May alongside Chief Mgbor and an unidentified boy who were also murdered about the same period.
Similarly, on July 30, Baridule Cletus Dunle was shot dead while on October 4, 2017, Godspower Aligbo and Dickson Gogo-Jaja had their lives snuffed out by suspected cultists in the very lively community that hosts the Nigerian Agip Oil Company, one of the nation’s oil giants.
While security reports have blamed the killings on inter-cult rivalry, other sources say that the murders may not be unconnected with chieftaincy tussle, land dispute and youth leadership crisis in the community.
Whatever may be the reason, The Tide unreservedly condemns the mindless orgy of wastage of invaluable human lives. We insist that no reason can be reasonable enough to justify the killing of the innocent people.
We earnestly endorse the Rivers State Government’s condemnation of the unfortunate incident in Mgbuoshimini and its charge to security agencies in the state to rise up to the occasion and stop the reckless blood-letting in this community in particular and the entire State.
The Tide commends the Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike for the prompt visit to the scene of the crime, condoling with the bereaved families and firmly promising that “those involved in this dastardly act will not go scot-free”, even as he emphasised that “we will fight the cultists to the point that they will know that Rivers State is not a safe haven for them”.
There is no gainsaying the fact that the task of eradicating cultism and other violent crimes in the State is a collective responsibility that requires all indigenes as well as residents in the state to synergise in the anti-crime campaign.
The Tide is aware that the window of opportunity opened by the Rivers State Government through the state Amnesty Programme for cultists and other criminals to repent and be rehabilitated has since closed. The security agencies must, therefore, bring down their full might on those who have made a choice to make lives unbearable for peace-loving and law-abiding citizens.
To this end, all the agencies which have the constitutional responsibility to ensure the security of lives and property of the citizenry, especially the police, must resolve to work in perfect understanding and cooperation with the state government to achieve the goal of making Rivers State a crime-free state.
On his part, President Muhammadu Buhari should respond to the Rivers State Government’s repeated demand for the redeployment of the State Commander of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, Mr Akin Fakorede often accused of complicity in the disruption of the state’s security architecture. An urgent action in this direction will ensure cordial and effective collaboration in the fight against crime and criminality in the state.
After all, those behind the murder of innocent persons in Mgbuoshimini and other killings did not come from outer space. People must also volunteer information on the identities and whereabouts of the perpetrators to the security agencies for them to be apprehended and dealt with accordingly.
Mgbuoshimini chiefs, youths and other stakeholders in particular, and all community leaders in general in Rivers State, must deliberately commit to resolving issues through peaceful and lawful means, instead of taking to aggressive and violent measures at the slightest provocation.
Everyone must come to the immutable realisation that to employ violence in the resolution of any conflict is to guarantee a mutually assured destruction, and that people must deliberately cultivate the virtues of good neighbourliness, self restraint and respect for the sanctity of life for our communities and individuals to experience sustainable progress and development.
Editorial
Making Rivers’ Seaports Work

When Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, received the Board and Management of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), led by its Chairman, Senator Adeyeye Adedayo Clement, his message was unmistakable: Rivers’ seaports remain underutilised, and Nigeria is poorer for it. The governor’s lament was a sad reminder of how neglect and centralisation continue to choke the nation’s economic arteries.
The governor, in his remarks at Government House, Port Harcourt, expressed concern that the twin seaports — the NPA in Port Harcourt and the Onne Seaport — have not been operating at their full potential. He underscored that seaports are vital engines of national development, pointing out that no prosperous nation thrives without efficient ports and airports. His position aligns with global realities that maritime trade remains the backbone of industrial expansion and international commerce.
Indeed, the case of Rivers State is peculiar. It hosts two major ports strategically located along the Bonny River axis, yet cargo throughput has remained dismally low compared to Lagos. According to NPA’s 2023 statistics, Lagos ports (Apapa and Tin Can Island) handled over 75 per cent of Nigeria’s container traffic, while Onne managed less than 10 per cent. Such a lopsided distribution is neither efficient nor sustainable.
Governor Fubara rightly observed that the full capacity operation of Onne Port would be transformative. The area’s vast land mass and industrial potential make it ideal for ancillary businesses — warehousing, logistics, ship repair, and manufacturing. A revitalised Onne would attract investors, create jobs, and stimulate economic growth, not only in Rivers State but across the Niger Delta.
The multiplier effect cannot be overstated. The port’s expansion would boost clearing and forwarding services, strengthen local transport networks, and revitalise the moribund manufacturing sector. It would also expand opportunities for youth employment — a pressing concern in a state where unemployment reportedly hovers around 32 per cent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Yet, the challenge lies not in capacity but in policy. For years, Nigeria’s maritime economy has been suffocated by excessive centralisation. Successive governments have prioritised Lagos at the expense of other viable ports, creating a traffic nightmare and logistical bottlenecks that cost importers and exporters billions annually. The governor’s call, therefore, is a plea for fairness and pragmatism.
Making Lagos the exclusive maritime gateway is counter productive. Congestion at Tin Can Island and Apapa has become legendary — ships often wait weeks to berth, while truck queues stretch for kilometres. The result is avoidable demurrage, product delays, and business frustration. A more decentralised port system would spread economic opportunities and reduce the burden on Lagos’ overstretched infrastructure.
Importers continue to face severe difficulties clearing goods in Lagos, with bureaucratic delays and poor road networks compounding their woes. The World Bank’s Doing Business Report estimates that Nigerian ports experience average clearance times of 20 days — compared to just 5 days in neighbouring Ghana. Such inefficiency undermines competitiveness and discourages foreign investment.
Worse still, goods transported from Lagos to other regions are often lost to accidents or criminal attacks along the nation’s perilous highways. Reports from the Federal Road Safety Corps indicate that over 5,000 road crashes involving heavy-duty trucks occurred in 2023, many en route from Lagos. By contrast, activating seaports in Rivers, Warri, and Calabar would shorten cargo routes and save lives.
The economic rationale is clear: making all seaports operational will create jobs, enhance trade efficiency, and boost national revenue. It will also help diversify economic activity away from the overburdened South West, spreading prosperity more evenly across the federation.
Decentralisation is both an economic strategy and an act of national renewal. When Onne, Warri, and Calabar ports operate optimally, hinterland states benefit through increased trade and infrastructure development. The federal purse, too, gains through taxes, duties, and improved productivity.
Tin Can Island, already bursting at the seams, exemplifies the perils of over-centralisation. Ships face berthing delays, containers stack up, and port users lose valuable hours navigating chaos. The result is higher operational costs and lower competitiveness. Allowing states like Rivers to fully harness their maritime assets would reverse this trend.
Compelling all importers to use Lagos ports is an anachronistic policy that stifles innovation and local enterprise. Nigeria cannot achieve its industrial ambitions by chaining its logistics system to one congested city. The path to prosperity lies in empowering every state to develop and utilise its natural advantages — and for Rivers, that means functional seaports.
Fubara’s call should not go unheeded. The Federal Government must embrace decentralisation as a strategic necessity for national growth. Making Rivers’ seaports work is not just about reviving dormant infrastructure; it is about unlocking the full maritime potential of a nation yearning for balance, productivity, and shared prosperity.
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