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Wike Is My Role Model, Eke Affirms

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The Executive Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State, Hon. Solomon Abel Eke, has said that Governor Nyesom Wike is his political role model in the state and in the country.
Eke, who made this assertion during a media tour of projects in the local government, said Wike is the politician he considers as a role model because the governor does not pretend.
Outside the shores of Nigeria, Eke, however, named former South African President, Nelson Mandela as his role model.
His words, “Governor Nyesom Wike is my role model. He is my role model in the state and even in the entire country, it is Nyesom Wike. Outside the shores of Nigeria, it is Nelson Mandela. The simple reason is because we don’t pretend. These people don’t pretend.
“Me too, I don’t pretend. If you know me, you will know that I don’t pretend. Whatever I want to do, I will tell you this is the reason for it. I have told you that projects I am embarking on are projects that have impact on the people; the livelihoods of the people. My slogan is ‘service to humanity’; that is why I am in politics. I am not here to favour anybody.”
The council chairman further noted that the prudent management of funds has been the secret behind the success story of his administration so far, contending that his administration tries to leave a landmark achievement on every money that comes into the council’s coffers.
Eke further indicated that his administration has by no means surpassed the achievements of his predecessors but said, “Because we are focused, we are trailing behind them, the past administrations.”
He said while the Wike administration at the council then between 1999 and 2006 constructed eight or more roads, he (Eke) was currently struggling with two.
“The Governor, in all communities of the local government did borehole projects because they requested for them that time. Those boreholes are still there now. That is why I can say I am not doing borehole again. I have been able to do four boreholes so far based on request. The governor also built schools and built health centres. I am struggling to do those things. I have not even done it. I cannot say I have beaten them. When it comes to Timothy Nsirim, you can see the International Market built by him. He even directed that we build markets in all the 17 wards. He did about 15 roads. I am even struggling to do two. I cannot say that what they did, I have been able to do it,” Eke said.
He attributed this state of affairs to paucity of funds, as monthly allocations for the council have dropped compared to those days, made worse by the relocation of several companies out of the local government.
“The magic is that by that time; the allocation was better than what we have now. We did not have this increment in workforce. You cannot compare that time and now,” he said.
Eke said he would need a second term mandate in order to do those things he has not been able to do like sports centre, proposed school projects in Iriebe and Woji communities as well as completion of the ongoing Legislative Assembly Complex at the Council Secretariat, a fish farm, among others.
Meanwhile, state Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, has been described as Nigeria’s democratic leadership champion of the 21st century.
Addressing journalists recently at Rumuodomaya shortly after projects assessment tour of the area, Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Council, Prince Solomon Eke, said that Governor Wike was able to enhance democratic governance in the oil and gas- rich state in particular and Nigeria in general through numerous development projects spread across the length and breath of the state since 2015 to date.
He stressed that the Governor was able to strengthen democratic governance through roads construction and re-construction, rehabilitation, building of flyovers to ease traffic congestion in the state capital, the provision of security for the people both in the urban and rural communities of the state within the lifespan of this administration.
He maintained that the governor equally provided the people with good and acceptable sanitary feat, regular power and water supply in all the nooks and crannies of the state, payment of workers’ salaries and other welfare incentives as at when due, and the restoration of peace and harmony, as well as returning the lost glory of the state from Garbage to Garden City status’, among others.
Eke, who is poised for a re-election based on his performance so far, especially the envisaged projects in the 17 Wards of the LGA, said that Wike’s rural and urban development’ since the emergence of democracy in 1999 speaks volumes of him in infrastructural transformation, thereby making democracy to be meaningful, realisable and achievable, which successive administrations failed to address.
According to him, “This achievement so far of the governor will enhance electoral management in Nigeria as it will improve the lives of the people for better future”.
In his words: “Governor Nyesom Wike has done marvellously well in the provision of lasting infrastructural development in Rivers State within the six years of this dispensation, thereby strengthening democracy in the state in particular and Nigeria in general. I doff my hat for his resilience thus far in this regard,” he said, and described him, as a champion and role model”.
The council boss further urged Rivers indigenes particularly and Nigerians generally to support the governor’s quest to build better bridges of development in the last lap of this government through sacrificing their energies and ensure that detractors and enemies of good governance did not destabilise efforts of the Wike-led administration in the state.
Meanwhile, Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Council, Prince Solomon Eke, has stated that the rationale behind the projects assessment tour was not to seek for second tenure, rather for the world and the people to ascertain his interest to bring good governance to the grassroots.
Eke averred: “I don’t like blowing empty trumpet, instead, the people will determine whether second term is possible or not. I am poised to offer the best to Obio/Akpor people. The places visited in the tour include, Rumuodomaya, where he built sick-bay at the council for first aid treatment of staff, Legislative Assembly Complex under construction for the accommodation of councilors, corps members’ lodge, classroom, administrative and laboratory blocks at Community Secondary School, Rumuodomaya.
Others are borehole and Information Communication Technology (ICT) with computers and other accessories at Rumuokoro Town Hall, Eliohan road, on-going jetty project at Rumuolumeni and ICT hall at Ozuoba, among other ongoing development projects of the present administration in the area.

 

By: Donatus Ebi & Bethel Toby

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Reps Constitution Review Committee Holds Zonal Hearing For Rivers, C’River, Akwa Ibom In Calabar

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In a renewed effort to deepen Nigeria’s constitutional democracy, the House of Representatives Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution has announced the commencement of its Zonal and National Public Hearings across the country.

A press statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the Cross River State Governor, Mr Linus Obogo, disclosed that the Calabar Centre — designated as Centre B — will host representatives and stakeholders from Cross River, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom States.

The public hearing is scheduled to take place on Saturday, July 19, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. at the Transcorp (Metropolitan) Hotel, Calabar.

The initiative, according to the statement, is designed to promote inclusive dialogue and capture the aspirations of Nigerians from all regions.

It aims to serve as a platform for citizens to contribute meaningfully to the ongoing national efforts to refine and strengthen the country’s legal and institutional frameworks.

“Citizens, civil society groups, professional bodies, traditional rulers, and other interest blocs are invited to participate in this landmark engagement aimed at advancing a more just, equitable, and responsive Nigerian Constitution,” the statement read.

The hearing forms part of the broader review process of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), and is seen as a strategic move toward fostering national unity and addressing structural legal issues within the federation.

 

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Tinubu’s Contribution To Buhari’s Presidency Marginal – Ex-SGF

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Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss Mustapha, has stirred fresh political controversy by dismissing claims that President Bola Tinubu was highly instrumental to former President Muhammadu Buhari’s emergence in 2015 after the merger of political parties that formed the All Progressives Congress (APC).

For the first time since 2022, when then-presidential aspirant Alhaji Bola Tinubu declared he made former President Buhari Nigeria’s President in 2015, Mr Mustapha dismissed the claims, stressing that the merger only contributed about three million votes in addition to Buhari’s existing 12 million votes in the North.

He insisted that former President Buhari’s integrity, national stature, and disciplined messaging were central to the breakthrough, not the three million votes from the merging parties, which he described as insignificant.

Speaking on the role of the merging parties, particularly President Tinubu, the leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Mr Mustapha, who was the keynote speaker at the launch of the book ‘According to the President: Lessons from a Presidential Spokesman’s Experience’ authored by Mallam Garba Shehu, described the impact of the votes from other merging parties as very insignificant.

In attendance were former Head of State Yakubu Gowon, chair of the event; immediate past Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; SGF George Akume, who represented President Tinubu; PDP’s 2023 presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar; former Chief of Staff to Buhari Ibrahim Gambari; elder statesman Babagana Kingibe; former governors Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Chris Ngige (Anambra), Rauf Aregbesola (Osun), Raji Babatunde Fashola (Lagos); former ministers Solomon Dalung and Sunday Dare; former Army Chief Tukur Buratai, and Bayo Onanuga, President Tinubu’s spokesman, among others.

According to Mr Mustapha, “I do not intend to stir up any controversy. The merger in 2013 was midwifed to create a Buhari presidency. Let us look at the statistics. In the 2003 election, it was the Obasanjo-Buhari presidential contest where Buhari recorded 12.7 million votes. In 2007, it came to 6.6 million, and it went back to 12.2 million in 2011.

“When we were conceptualising the merger, what would give us a headstart? Obviously, it was at the back of our consciousness that the merger with the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), though it had only one state, the ACN had six states, ANPP three states, and when you sum up the total votes that we had as the presidency in 2015, the aggregate of the total votes was 15.4 million.

“So, basically, what we brought to the table after the merger outside the Buhari 12.5 million votes was three million. Before turning to that presidency, it is important to recognise the former President’s role in reshaping Nigeria’s political trajectory.

“In early 2013, as the leader of the CPC, Buhari formally requested and supported the creation of a CPC merger committee, part of a broader coalition-building process that brought together the ACN, ANPP, APGA faction, and elements of the ruling party through the breakaway ‘new PDP’ group. His endorsement and participation, along with other party leaders such as President Tinubu and Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, lent credibility and direction to the merger, helping to unify disparate party factions under the banner of the APC. That coalition-building paved the way for the first democratic defeat of an incumbent ruling party in Nigeria’s history.

“President Buhari’s integrity, national stature, and disciplined messaging were central to that breakthrough. No account of President Buhari’s tenure would be complete without acknowledging the extended periods he spent on medical leave. These moments, while politically delicate, were also telling of his leadership philosophy and personality,” he said.

In his remarks, President Tinubu promised to build on the legacies of former President Buhari, stressing that “nation-building is a relay. The efforts of one administration lay the foundation for the next.

“In this regard, I acknowledge the efforts of my predecessor, President Buhari, and assure all Nigerians that the reform-oriented path he initiated will be consolidated and strengthened under this administration. Our Renewed Hope Agenda is inspired by the desire to build a resilient, just, and inclusive Nigeria—a nation that delivers dividends of democracy to all its citizens”.

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Your Lies Chasing Investors From Nigeria, Omokri Slams Obi

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Former Presidential aide, Mr Reno Omokri, has accused Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, of spreading false information about Nigeria’s debt profile, claiming it is deterring foreign investors from the country.

Speaking during an appearance on live television on Wednesday, Mr Omokri alleged that Mr Obi’s statements were misleading and damaging to the country’s economic prospects.

Mr Omokri said some investors currently operating in Nigeria were considering exiting the market due to Mr Obi’s remarks.

“That is not true. He doesn’t rile me up. I rile him up. The reason why I came here is because I’m a patriot. Peter Obi lied. You know, foreign direct investors are watching your programme, who are making investment decisions not to come to Nigeria. There are foreign investors in Nigeria that are making investment decisions to leave Nigeria because of the lie he told.

“One of the lies he told is that President Tinubu has borrowed more than the administrations of Yar’Adua, Jonathan, Buhari. That is a blatant lie”, Mr Omokri said.

To buttress his claims, Mr Omokri referenced figures from the Debt Management Office (DMO), maintaining that President Tinubu had actually reduced Nigeria’s external debt burden since assuming office.

“I have here with me data from the Debt Management Office, and Nigerians who are watching can go to DMO.com and search Debt Management Office, Nigeria State of Indebtedness 2015.

“As of 2015, Nigeria was owing a total of $63 billion. When Buhari was leaving office, Nigeria was owing $113 billion. Today, from the DMO, our debt has gone from $113 billion to $97 billion, meaning that Tinubu has reduced our debt by over $14 billion.

“We should be appreciating this man. Yet Peter Obi came here and lied to the Nigerian people. He took the debts and translated them into naira to make it look like the debts have increased”, he said.

 

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