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Odili: Fubara Blocked Wike’s Efforts to Make Rivers His Personal Estate

Published

1 year ago

December 28, 2024

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Fubara prevented Wike from making Rivers his private estate – Odili

By Daniel Abia, Port Harcourt

The former governor of Rivers State and one-time presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Dr Peter Odili, has said Governor Siminalayi Fubara stopped the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Minister, Nyesom Wike, from turning the state to a private estate.

Odili disclosed that Governor Fubara summoned an unusual fortitude to confront the quest by Wike to capture Rivers state through ferocious, but unnecessary political war.

Odili spoke at a Christmas ballad organized by him in honour of Governor Fubara and his family.

He stated that as a family, he, his wife and children, decided to host the Rivers State Governor and his family to a night of varieties of song and other activities in appreciation of “the fortitude and sterling leadership qualities he has demonstrated”.

Dr Odili explained that it is now over 12 months, since the 25th of October 2023, when a fierce existential fight, though unnecessary, was waged against Governor Fubara over the soul of Rivers State.

He said that with assuring fortitude, “Governor Fubara confronted the challenge, prevented the quest by one man to capture the State as a private estate, emancipated Rivers people, steadied governance and made civil servants and Rivers people happier as it used to be until he left office in 2007,” he said.

Fubara speaks

Responding, Governor Fubara said that God has proved Himself worthy as the Ultimate Liberator of the State and its people because He ensured total triumph over the political crisis and those behind it.

Governor Fubara stated that while the political antagonism lasted, God gave him a new perspective to leadership.

He added that with the strength of support from Rivers people, he stopped seeing the crisis as a problem, but as a necessary enabler in governance.

“And not just because I want to accept it, I get stronger in this course every day when I look at the support I am getting from the true Rivers people.

“So, it is not me being strong. My strength is drawn from everyone of you that is here. You gave me the encouragement; you do the work for me; you make the calls for me. So, why won’t I stand up for you.

“But we also believe strongly that the ultimate game changer, the ultimate liberator, and the ultimate fighter still remains God Almighty. And because we have Him on our side, victory is assured.”

Governor Fubara said God is in control of the affairs of the State, adding that as they look forward to a very prosperous 2025, they should be assured that it will be better than what had been experienced.

He assured of the determination of his administration to make every succeeding year in the State better with remarkable records of progress, stressing that the excitement experienced among Rivers people during the Christmas celebrations is indicative of a brighter future ahead.

Governor Fubara vowed to continue to do what is right.

He said it is also delighting to see true leaders of the State and well-meaning Rivers people standing on the right side of history despite the pressures to surrender to tyranny and oppression.

“I want to thank everyone, and I assure you that we will continue to run a government that will uplift the image of the State. We will not be tyrants.

“We will remember that what we are doing here today is a shift job, and that one day, our time will be up, and we’ll leave for another person to take over.

“And what is important is to allow the machine to keep running effectively, so that when the other person comes, he continues with that steam for progress in the State.

“So, I thank everyone of you for your support,” Fubara added.

Speaker

Also speaking, Speaker of Rivers State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Victor Oko-Jumbo recalled how the crisis that erupted in the Assembly swept them off their feet, but quickly added that the encouragement from Governor Fubara emboldened him and a few others to stand up for the truth to liberate the State.

In his speech, Chief Judge of Rivers State, Justice Simeon Amadi, said he least expected to have remained a chief judge, just as he didn’t expect the Governor to last in office up until now given the political crisis.

He noted that God has turned the crisis as a liberation fight, and assured that he will continue to be on the right side in defence of the State.

Sekibo

Also speaking, former Minister of Transport, Dr Abiye Sekibo, noted that the gathering was a roll call of the political family of Dr Peter

He said Governor Fubara had sufficiently blended traits of Dr Odili’s leadership style with his, and steered the course of governance successfully, making the people of State proud of him as a worthy son.

In his vote of thanks, the Chairman, of Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC, Justice Adolphus Enebeli (rtd), thanked the Odilis for organising the family reunion, and lauded the Governor and his family for showing unassuming humility and honouring the invitation.

He also thanked genuine elders and leaders of the State for joining in the celebration.

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International News

Israel Says Struck Two Naval Missile Production Sites In Tehran

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45 minutes ago

March 25, 2026

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The Israeli military announced on Wednesday it had struck two naval cruise missile production facilities operating under Iran’s ministry of defence in Tehran.

“In recent days, the Israeli air force acting on IDF intelligence struck two key naval cruise missile production sites in Tehran,” the military said.

It said the facilities were used to “develop and manufacture long-range naval cruise missiles, which are capable of rapidly destroying targets at sea and on land”.

The strikes “represent another step in deepening the damage done to the regime’s military production infrastructure”, the military added.

Last week, the military announced its fighter jets had struck several Iranian naval ships in the Caspian Sea, including vessels equipped with anti-submarine missiles.

AFP

International News

2025 ‘Deadliest Year’ Yet For Red Sea Migrants, UN Reports 922 Deaths

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47 minutes ago

March 25, 2026

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The number of migrants who died on the “Eastern Route” from the Horn of Africa to the Arabian Peninsula doubled to a record high of 922 last year, the UN migration agency said Wednesday.

Tens of thousands of migrants from Ethiopia, Somalia and neighbouring countries take the route across the Red Sea each year, mostly from Djibouti to Yemen, in search of work as labourers or domestic workers in wealthy Gulf countries.

“2025 was the deadliest year ever recorded on the Eastern migration route… with 922 people dead or missing — double the number from the previous year,” Tanja Pacifico, head of mission for the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in Djibouti, told AFP.

The majority of victims were from Ethiopia, the second most-populous country in Africa with more than 130 million people. It is plagued by multiple internal conflicts and deep poverty.

“IOM remains fully committed to working alongside the government of Djibouti to promote safe and dignified migration pathways, in order to prevent further tragedies,” said Pacifico.

Many migrants who cross the Red Sea find themselves stuck in Yemen, the poorest country on the Arabian Peninsula, which has been embroiled in a civil war for nearly a decade, and some even choose to return.

Rapid economic growth in Ethiopia — estimated to reach around 10 percent in 2026 — could encourage less migration, IOM says, but that is mitigated by high inflation, also around 10 percent in February.

AFP

International News

Denmark Faces Lengthy Negotiations To Form A Government

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1 hour ago

March 25, 2026

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Election workers recount ballots in the Marselisborg Hallen in Aarhus, Denmark on March 25, 2026. (Photo by Mikkel Berg Pedersen / Ritzau Scanpix / AFP) /

Denmark’s political parties began the thorny process of forming a government Wednesday, with the centrist Moderates as kingmaker after the prime minister’s Social Democrats scraped through a general election without a majority.

Greenland’s Inuit Ataqatigiit party member Naaja Nathanielsen (C) looks on in a polling station in Nuuk, on March 24, 2026, during the parliamentary election in Denmark (Photo by Oscar Scott Carl / Ritzau Scanpix / AFP) / Denmark OUT

Danes were braced for a weeks-long process as Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen seeks to consolidate power in the deeply splintered parliament after Tuesday’s snap vote.

Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen arrives at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen to inform the king about the election result one day after the parliamentary election on March 25, 2026. (Photo by Martin Sylvest / Ritzau Scanpix / AFP)

A left-wing bloc made up of five parties, including Frederiksen’s Social Democrats, won 84 seats; the right-wing and far-right claimed 77; and the Moderates won 14 in the election.

The Social Democrats posted their worst election score since 1903—though they remained Denmark’s largest single party, with 38 seats in the 179-seat parliament.

Chairwoman of the Social Democrats Mette Frederiksen attends a party leader debate hosted by Publicists’ Club one the day after the parliamentary election at the Confederation of Danish Industry’s building in Copenhagen on March 25, 2026. (Photo by Liselotte Sabroe / Ritzau Scanpix / AFP)

Frederiksen formally tendered her coalition government’s resignation to King Frederik on Wednesday, telling a televised party leader debate she wanted to try to form a centre-left government.

“The most realistic scenario” would be a coalition with the five parties on the left and the centre-right Moderates, she said.

But it is not certain the Moderates, led by Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, would agree to that.

“I don’t believe that Denmark needs policies aligned with” the leftist Red-Green Alliance, Lokke said.

Chairman of the Moderates Lars Loekke Rasmussen attends a party leader debate at the Confederation of Danish Industry’s building in Copenhagen on March 25, 2026, the day after the parliamentary election. (Photo by Liselotte Sabroe / Ritzau Scanpix / AFP) / Denmark OUT

King Frederik was to meet party leaders individually later Wednesday to determine who should be asked to try to form the next government.

“My expectation is that Mette Frederiksen will become prime minister,” University of Copenhagen political science professor Rune Stubager told reporters.

“But I don’t know with the backing of which parties, like the left wing or the right wing,” he said.

He noted that Lokke, a two-time former prime minister, would likely vie for the position of prime minister, even though he has adamantly denied any interest in the job.

“Danes want me and not another prime minister. I still have the backing to be able to continue on behalf of the Danish people,” Frederiksen insisted during the debate.

Frederiksen has for the past four years headed an unprecedented left-right coalition made up of her Social Democrats, the Moderates and the Liberals.

The Liberals have refused to continue in a Social Democrat-led government.

‘Too Hard To Say’

Danes are now prepared for long negotiations. After the 2022 election, the talks lasted six weeks.

“It’s a long process, which means the government won’t be formed and it will be quite difficult to pass laws during this period,” lamented Jesper Dyrfjeld Christensen, a 54-year-old engineer.

“It’s really too hard to say who will be part of the coalition,” admitted Stubager.

With 12 parties in parliament, the political landscape is jagged — though Denmark is accustomed to minority governments.

“To some extent, this is the way Danish politics works. You have a minority government in the centre which forms a majority with the left on some issues and with the right on others,” he explained.

The negotiations are expected to focus on economic and pension issues, pollution and immigration, he said.

The traditional far-right party, the Danish People’s Party, which has heavily influenced policy since the late 1990s but slumped in the 2022 election, more than tripled its result to 9.1 per cent of votes.

The three anti-immigration groups together garnered 17 per cent, a stable figure for Denmark’s populist right over the past two decades.

“If negotiations take place in the left-wing bloc with the moderates, then there will be more focus on green issues than on immigration,” Stubager said.

“But if, instead, the Moderates negotiate with the parties on the right, then the central issue will be immigration.”

Four seats in Denmark’s parliament are held by its two autonomous territories — two for Greenland and two for the Faroe Islands.

While the Faroese renewed the mandates of the two outgoing lawmakers, with one for each bloc, Greenland overwhelmingly backed the left-wing party and Naleraq, which advocates rapid independence from Denmark.

AFP