The Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.), on Thursday, formally handed over power to Governor Siminalayi Fubara, marking the end of six months of emergency rule in the state.

In his farewell address at Government House, Port Harcourt, Ibas declared that his assignment, which began in March when President Bola Tinubu appointed him to stabilise the state amid political turmoil, had “restored law and order” and delivered what he described as “milestones of progress.”

He listed some of the achievements under his tenure to include the conduct of local government elections, the reconstitution of statutory boards, and the passage of the State’s 2025 budget by the National Assembly.

Reflecting on his stewardship, Ibas stressed the need for restraint and dialogue in the exercise of power.

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“One of the enduring lessons of this season is that the exercise of power without restraint can cripple institutions, and rivalry without dialogue clearly endangers democracy,” he said.

Handing the reins of leadership back to Governor Fubara, he urged Rivers people to give the governor their full support.

“Now, as I hand back the reigns of leadership to His Excellency Governor Siminalayi Fubara, I do so with confidence and respect. I call all Rivers people to support him wholeheartedly because leadership and followership is a shared responsibility,” Ibas stated.

The retired naval chief, who previously served as Chief of Naval Staff and Nigeria’s ambassador to Ghana, described his service in Rivers State as “another chapter in a life devoted to service at sea, in diplomacy, and now in governance.”

READ ALSO:BREAKING: Tinubu Ends State Of Emergency In Rivers

In an emotional close, Ibas prayed for unity and stability in the state, “My dear people, may this state never again be brought to the brink of collapse. May we always choose unity over division, dialogue over discord, and progress over paralysis. The Garden City must never lose its fragrance. May God bless us all. May God bless Rivers State, and may God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Recall that President Tinubu had in March declared a state of emergency in Rivers following an escalating political crisis, suspending Governor Fubara, his deputy, and the State House of Assembly while dissolving political structures. Ibas was appointed sole administrator to restore order.

On Wednesday, however, Tinubu lifted the emergency rule, paving the way for the return of democratic governance and the reinstatement of Governor Fubara and other elected officials.

The Anambra State Government has insisted that Senator Uche Ekwunife’s contrite apology must follow a personal and direct retraction of her defamatory statements against Governor Chukwuma Soludo and his wife, Nonye.

Senior Special Assistant to Governor Soludo on New Media, Ejimofor Opara, in a statement on Wednesday said Senator Ekwunife’s purported apology is another fabrication fit for the waste bin.

“Our attention has been drawn to a press statement purporting to emanate from an entity described as the “Ekwunife Campaign Organization” and captioned “EKWUNIFE CAMPAIGN ORGANIZATION DISOWNS AND CONDEMNS MALICIOUS ARTICLE ASSOCIATED WITH HER”. This purported apology from a seemingly fictitious organization raises more questions than answers,” Opara said.

“Worse still, the statement was signed by an unknown person who was not the source of Madam Ekwunife’s slur remarks against the Governor and his wife.

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“The publication, authored by one Tony Ezike, Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, presents several issues: The publication purporting to be an apology for the defamatory statements made against the Governor and his wife personally by Senator Ekwunife, does not appear to have emanated from the Senator herself, given that her defamatory statements were made directly via recorded video and leaked audio conversation.”

Opara said it is a known fact that there is no campaign organization known as the Ekwunife Campaign Organization since Senator Ekwunife’s ticket is a joint one with the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

He said this suggests that the statement did not truly emanate from Senator Ekwunife and therefore cannot be credited to her, adding that at best, it may be a ploy to prevaricate the fundamental issues posed by the First Lady in her personally signed statement.

Opara added that wherein Soludo’s wife challenged Senator Ekwunife to two key issues, first of which, is that she, as a converted Catholic, agrees to swear to an oath before the blessed sacrament that she has not known any other man since her marriage to Chief Larry Ekwunife, and she (Dr. Nonye Soludo) would also do same.

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The second is for her to accept an all expense paid DNA test of her four children, three of whom were allegedly fathered by men other than her husband. In like manner, Mrs Soludo would present her six children for same test.

Opara argued that the defamatory publications were directly made by Senator Ekwunife through audio recordings and statements, stressing that any apology or retraction should logically come from the same source to carry significance.

He added that sadly, the so-called apology never referenced Ekwunife’s initial video and audio but chose to focus on an unsigned article.

Opara further said: “The purported apology referencing an unknown article with unknown authors, only points to one thing, and that is her complicity directly or indirectly as the source of the article—which contains only one of the many accusations she made against the Governor’s wife—it implies that no genuine apology was intended or tendered.

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“The publication is not considered an apology or retraction by Senator Ekwunife and is believed not to emanate from her. If she intended to apologize, she should present it in a manner that leaves no doubt about its source or reliability.

“More importantly, slander or libel directly made by an individual cannot be vicariously dismissed by any agent or person other than the individual who made them.

“We consider the purported apology as another unsubstantiated social media gossip/fabrication that is neither verifiable nor credible. It leaves ample room for plausible deniability.

READ ALSO: AAC Elects Woman To Battle Soludo In Gov Poll

“We will proceed as if this piece of propaganda never happened, while maintaining the position that a proper and direct retraction of all fabrications against the Governor and his wife by Senator Ekwunife is necessary.”

Opara added that such a retraction should be made through a medium that leaves no doubt about its authenticity.

Therefore, he said that a contrite apology must follow a personal and direct retraction of Ekwunife’s defamatory statements.

A group of eminent indigenes across 22 local government areas outside Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, under the aegis of Oyo G22 Renewed, has lamented what it described as decades of marginalisation in the governance of the state.

The group, in an open letter addressed to President Bola Tinubu, Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, and the national and state chairmen of the All Progressives Congress, Peoples Democratic Party, and African Democratic Congress, decried what it called a “historic and intolerable imbalance and insensitivity being perpetrated in Oyo State as far as the governorship slot is concerned.”

Among those who signed the letter were Prof. Wande Abimbola, Bishop Ayo Ladigbolu, Prof. Sulaiman Gbadegesin, Dr. Adesokan Ojebode, Prof. Nurain Tanimowo, Mr. Dokun Alagbe, Dr Akin Onigbinde and retired General Kunle Togun.

Since 1983, the group pointed out, Ibadan had produced Omololu Olunloyo, Kolapo Ishola, Lamidi Adesina, Rashidi Ladoja, Abiola Ajimobi, and the incumbent Makinde as governors.

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They therefore called on all political parties in the state to ensure that their 2027 governorship candidates emerge from the non-Ibadan zones of Ogbomoso, Oyo, Ibarapa, and Oke-Ogun.

They noted that the only non-Ibadan indigene to emerge governor was the late Adebayo Alao-Akala from Ogbomoso, who governed between May 2007 and May 2011.

The letter read, “A cursory look at the pattern of governorship candidates and elections in other South-West states has revealed that, contrary to the winner-takes-all situation in Oyo State, no particular zone has been dominating the political landscape of their respective states.

“All told, the voting pattern in Oyo State has consistently shown that only 30 per cent of the voting population in Ibadan are Ibadan indigenes. The implication of this is that the remaining 70 per cent belong to the other zones of the state as well as non-indigenes of Oyo State.”

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They urged Ibadan indigenes to abandon what they termed an uncompromising posture and, in the interest of “justice, peaceful co-existence, equity, and fairness,” ensure that candidates from the 22 LGAs outside Ibadan produce the next governor.

“We, on behalf of the 22 local government areas outside Ibadan in the state, are determined to make the following changes: that all political parties in the state should support this peaceful and legitimate demand of the remaining four zones in the state by ensuring that their respective parties nominate governorship candidates from among the 22 local government areas for the 2027 general election.

“That you prevail on your political platform to make this a reality and a realisable objective in the interest of all.

“While we are not oblivious of the fact that you belong to different political platforms, apart from our current interest in rotating the governorship seat in Oyo State, as a neutral body, we wish every platform success in the forthcoming general election in 2027.

“However, we would be earnestly delighted to give our unflinching support to those who support this, our only aspiration.

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“In thanking you for giving thoughts to this, our humble consideration, we are confident that your intervention, as the leaders of your various platforms, would soften the hearts of our Ibadan co-compatriots on this vexed issue,” the letter read.

Citing examples from neighbouring states, the group further argued that governors of Ondo, Osun, and Ekiti States were typically not indigenes of the state capitals, unlike in Oyo, where Ibadan has largely dominated the governorship.

“For instance, since the creation of Ondo, Osun, and Ekiti States, apart from rotating the governorship slot, no indigene of the state capitals—Akure, Osogbo, and Ado-Ekiti—has been elected governor of these three states. The citizens of the state capital have always ensured that the governor comes from outside the state capital. In Ogun State, the slot oscillates between the Egbas and the Ijebus.

“Even at the federal level, if the North had weaponised its famed voting population, no Southerner would have emerged as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This is where the seeming uncompromising posture of Ibadan becomes an issue,” the letter read.