Mr Viral
26 March 2025 at 20:40Sole Administrator in charge of Rivers State, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas (rtd)Retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, the Sole Administrator in charge of Rivers State, has suspended all the political appointees of the suspended Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, with immediate effect.
The decision is conveyed in a statement on Wednesday, March 26, 2025, in which the administrator’s Chief of Staff said the pronouncement was made under the powers granted to Ibas by President Bola Tinubu.
The suspension affects the Secretary to the State Government, the Chief of Staff, all commissioners, chairpersons, and members of boards, agencies, commissions, and parastatals, as well as all Special Advisers, Special Assistants, and Senior Special Assistants—all appointed by Fubara.
The administrator directed the suspended officials to hand over to the Permanent Secretaries in their respective ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).
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In the absence of a Permanent Secretary, the most senior Director or Head of Administration will assume leadership.
President Tinubu swore Ibas in as Sole Administrator on Wednesday, March 19, following the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State a day earlier.
He had suspended Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Nma Odu, and all elected members of the Rivers State House of Assembly for an initial period of six months.
The decision followed attacks on economic installations in the oil-rich state, believed to be connected to the political impasse between Fubara and lawmakers loyal to his predecessor and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike.
Ibas, a former Chief of Naval Staff, was drafted into the South-South state to maintain law and order.
“If the main issue is that of maintaining law and order in the state, I think for any meaningful activities to take place in Rivers State, that is the utmost task that I have,” he said to State House correspondents after the swearing-in.
The retired naval boss also vowed to collaborate with other stakeholders to restore order in the state.
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