Author: Emmanuel Obe

The Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Mr. Martin Amaewhule, on Wednesday led members of the Assembly to Abua/Odual Local Government Area to inaugurate a number of projects and vehicles executed by the council chairman, Mr. Ofori Owolobi Michael, to mark his first 100 days in office. The projects commissioned include a community hall and a fleet of vehicles comprising 35 mini buses, two haulage vans, four 14-seater buses, 30 motorcycles and one ambulance. Speaking at the event, Hon. Owolobi said the buses were procured to ease transportation challenges faced by residents of the area, while the ambulance…

The Rivers State Police Command has rescued a kidnapped woman and neutralised two suspected kidnappers during an intelligence-led operation in Emohua Local Government Area of the state. The operation was carried out by operatives of the Anti-Cultism Unit (ACU), Emohua Annex, following a tip-off on the abduction of the victim, whose name was withheld. The woman, from Omademe Community, was kidnapped on Friday, December 5, 2025, along Ozuaha Road, Emohua. Police sources said the victim’s brother reported the incident to the Command on December 9, 2025, explaining that the kidnappers had demanded a ransom of N1.2 million and threatened to…

…Tinubu nominates new NMDPRA, NUPRC chiefs President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded to the Senate the names of two nominees to head Nigeria’s petroleum regulatory agencies, following the resignation of Engineer Farouk Ahmed as Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and Gbenga Komolafe as Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC). Both Ahmed and Komolafe were appointed in 2021 by former President Muhammadu Buhari to lead the two agencies established under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA). In separate letters to the Senate, President Tinubu requested the expedited confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo…

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has confirmed that the Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ette Ibas (rtd.), who administered the affairs of the state between March and September, left about ₦600 billion in the state’s coffers. Governor Fubara made the disclosure on Wednesday at the inauguration of the 14.2-kilometre Obodhi–Ozochi Road, which links Ahoada East and Ahoada West Local Government Areas. He added that he himself had left about ₦300 billion in the state treasury at the time President Bola Tinubu suspended him from office in March. The governor’s remarks appear to align with the recent position of the Speaker…

Prof. Chituru Godwill Orluwene has been appointed the new Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH). Orluwene, an indigene of Emohua Local Government Area of Rivers State, was until his appointment the Provost of the College of Medical Sciences, Rivers State University (RSU), Port Harcourt. A professor of Medical Pathology, Orluwene graduated from the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) in 1995. He began his academic career as a lecturer at UNIPORT before moving to Rivers State University a few years ago, where he rose to become Provost of the College of Medical Sciences. He…

The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to urgently intervene in what it described as a growing “cold war” in the downstream petroleum sector involving the Dangote Refinery and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA). PETROAN made the call in a statement issued in Abuja by its National President, Dr. Billy Gillis-Harry, following what it said was an escalating price war between petroleum product importers and the management of the Dangote Refinery. According to the association, public allegations and verbal attacks allegedly directed at the leadership…

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has inaugurated the first phase of the Greater TAF Housing Estate, consisting of 1,000 housing units, marking a significant step in his administration’s plan to deliver 20,000 homes across the state. At the commissioning ceremony, Governor Fubara described the project as a major milestone, noting that it was initiated at one of the most challenging periods of his administration. He said the housing scheme exemplifies his government’s commitment to inclusive and decentralised development, adding that it encountered more obstacles than any other project embarked upon so far. According to the governor, more than 90…

Eleme, Rivers State—In a bold call for self-driven development, scholar and innovation advocate Bode Osaro has unveiled a vision aimed at repositioning Eleme youths from job seekers to job creators, despite the heavy industrial presence in the area. Speaking on his background and motivation, Osaro recalled growing up in Eleme, a community long rooted in agriculture before the arrival of large-scale industrialisation. Today, Eleme hosts some of Nigeria’s most strategic industrial assets, including the Port Harcourt Refinery, Indorama Eleme Petrochemicals, Notore Chemical Company, Daewoo C&E Nigeria Limited, and over 200 multinational firms operating within the Oil and Gas Free Zone.…

Elem-Kalabari community in Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State has raised an alarm over what it described as a worsening environmental disaster caused by persistent pollution and two major oil spills linked to NNPC Eighteen Limited’s operations in OML-18, Cawthorne Channel. In a strongly petition dated December 4, 2025, and addressed to the Director-General of the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), community leaders said the spills traced to Well 41 and Well 43 have devastated waterways, destroyed livelihoods, and endangered public health across several Kalabari settlements. According to the petitioners, the spill from Well 41 has…

The Rivers State Police Command has rescued five persons abducted by suspected cultists in Emuoha Local Government Area. The victims, Prince London, Azubuike Kelechukwu, Elizabeth Aniete, Onyebuchi Precious and London Sampson, were freed unhurt during a midnight operation carried out around 1:00 a.m. on Thursday, December 4, 2025. According to a statement issued by the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Grace Iringe-Koko, the victims were kidnapped from their isolated residences by yet-to-be-identified cultists before police tactical units, working with sister security agencies and members of Rumudogo 2 community, carried out the successful rescue. The five victims have since been taken…