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Update : Fubara ordered bombing of Rivers Assembly, I am not under duress I resigned, Says ex-Rivers HoS Nwaeke
• Says suspended gov plotted Tinubu’s downfall through pipeline bombings
• ‘Fubara ordered Ehie to pull down Assembly to avert impeachment’
• Nwaeke links Bala Mohammed to sinister plot against President
• Says emergency saved Rivers, Nigeria from major disaster
The immediate past Rivers State Head of Service, Dr. George Nwaeke, yesterday gave what appears to be yet the most revealing insider’s account of some of the events that culminated in the March 18 suspension of Governor Siminilayi Fubara and the state Assembly for six months.
Nwaeke, who claimed to have been an eyewitness to some of the actions taken by Fubara, spoke of how the suspended governor allegedly plotted the destruction of the State House of Assembly and economic sabotage to ensure the downfall of President Bola Tinubu.
Nwaeke, in a video press conference and a statement, claimed that Fubara masterminded the bombing of the state House of Assembly, using his Chief of Staff, Edison Ehie.
Nwaeke was appointed as head of service by Fubara.
He said he was prompted to set the records straight following “the loads of misinformation on print and electronic media.”
He said he was not sacked neither or pressured to resign but resigned “willingly from the depth of my heart.”
He said: ”However, as an insider and a key player in this administration by my position, who worked closely with Siminilayi Fubara, it will be unfair for me to keep silent or not to address some key factors that has affected or will affect our state if we continue on this trajectory.”
He thanked the President for “a swift intervention in Rivers State crisis, especially on the state of emergency that was declared and assented to by the National Assembly.”
He added: “You will recall that when the governor was suspended, as the head of service, I was the next in command. So I am not speaking from outside, I am speaking as an insider.
“If not for the intervention of Mr. President, Nigeria would have faced the worst economic sabotage and Rivers State would have been up in flames.
“First, it all started with the Rivers State House of Assembly where the Governor, Siminilayi Fubara, directed his Chief of Staff (Edison Ehie) to burn down the assembly in a way to avert his impeachment.
“That evening, Edison was in Government House with two other boys, including the former Chairman of Obio/Akpor LGA, one Chijioke. I was there with them when a bag of money was handed over to Edison for that operation, though I do not know the amount inside.
“I want to tell Rivers people today that the House of Assembly complex in Moscow Road was clearly brought down by Edison Ehie under the instructions of Governor Siminilayi Fubara, I challenge him to an open confrontation and I will throw more light on it.
“A day after that incident, I almost resigned, but I was very scared because I know the power of a sitting governor and he knew that I am aware of the whole plan and that I am discomforted with the unconscionable act and deliberate posture of innocence and mien of a sheep.”
He also alleged that another attempt was made to “destroy the residential quarters of the House of Assembly members.”
Continuing, he said: “If not for the press conference that was held there by Rivers youths, Rivers elders and National Assembly members, that would have been another barbaric demolition in Rivers State.
“I came to realise that they actually wanted to demolish that second building, because after some weeks, he personally told me that if he knew early, he would have gone to pull down their hall before visiting the residential quarters of the assembly, and that he didn’t actually know that they had such a beautiful hall where they are using now for their sitting.
“I was shocked and I asked myself how could a man that wants to lead his people be destroying his state assets and wasting public funds on a needless ego fight.”
Nwaeke appealed to critics of the declaration of emergency rule by President Tinubu to retract their statements, saying without the urgent intervention, a lot of things would have gone wrong in the state.
Such critics, according to him, ”are only seeing the surface. If the President did not take proactive step, no one knows who would have been affected by the sinister plans that were cooking.”
He asked the President “not to give up on Rivers State affairs because a lot is going on there with Governor Fubara.”
He said one of the factors that “got me removed was when Governor Fubara told me that they would use the Ijaw to decide who would become the next president of Nigeria, and I asked him how will that work? Is it by votes or by what means?”
On alleged plan to shoot down the second term of President Tinubu, Nwaeke said: “He clearly told me that he is the chief security officer of Rivers State and his brother is in charge of Bayelsa State, and all the pipelines are under their care; that at the appropriate time, they would tell the boys what to do, and fund was not an issue.
“That was why when he made that statement in his public function that “I will tell the boys what to do at the appropriate time” I knew something was up and perhaps the time was near.
“He boasted to be the ‘David that will bring down the Goliath of Rivers State.’ That he has the backing of the cream-de-la cream in the state.
“The plan was to start from non-Ijaw speaking areas to destroy oil facilities to remove attention from the Ijaw and make it have a statewide look. The Ogoni, Oyibo, Ahoda areas were to be bombed first before the Ijaw zones. This would have brought down the government of President Tinubu and usher in a new President from the coalition of political parties with a Vice President from the Ijaw.
“The media was to be captured by paying heavily for airtime and retaining the social media influencers and known social critics on their payroll.
“I am not unaware of what this revelation means, but I am doing this to free my conscience and warn those innocent persons that are used to sway public sentiment that there is more than meets the eye in the Rivers matter.
“Sometimes I slept over in Government House. But I started being uncomfortable when Governor Bala Mohammed and some other stakeholders started nocturnal visits to Rivers State.
“I recall after one of such visits he told me that he would support Bala Mohammed or any other northerner for president; that discussions were ongoing.
“Although I was not bothered about whom he supports, I was more concerned about the quantum of state resources that he releases to these visitors at each visit.”
Nwaeke asked the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to call their Rivers labour leaders to order to avoid politicising labour in the state.
He said he was privy to several private meetings between the governor and labour leaders in the state and the largesse that accompanied each meeting to compromise the Labour Union.
“More worrisome is several meetings between the governor, his chief of staff and some militant leaders. The details of which meetings I was not privy to since I was not allowed into the meetings.
“However, each meeting ended with huge sums of money paid to attendees.”
He said Rivers people and the generality of Nigerians are “the beneficiary of the declaration of state of emergency rule in Rivers State and not Governor Fubara or Minister Wike.”
He stressed the need for the state’s Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd), to “step up his guards and be very vigilant, because I am aware of the sinister arrangement and dastardly plans to continue to hatch their plans if not put in check.”
He said: “This accounts for the organised media condemnations and seeming public outcry against Mr. President and National Assembly.
“Those who love democracy and humanity will always protect humanity and democracy. Mr. President, you have just protected democracy and humanity in Rivers State. I can now sleep with my conscience clear.”
Wike slams NBA for ‘hypocrisy’ on state of emergency
Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike yesterday faulted the Nigeria Bar Association’s (NBA) stance that the declaration of state of emergency in Rivers by President Bola Tinubu was unconstitutional and illegal.
Wike alleged that the NBA discredited Tinubu’s decision because the Rivers Government had promised to host its annual general conference.
The minister stated this when officials of the Body of Benchers, led by its Chairman, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), visited him in Abuja.
He added that the association did not support the declaration of the state of emergency because there would be no money to give to the NBA for the conference.
“What kind of hypocrisy is this?” he queried.
The minister called on the Body of Benchers to call the NBA to order over the association’s unnecessary criticism of the judiciary.
He said that the body should not sit and watch, while the NBA and its members destroy the legal profession.
He said that some of the members of NBA, often without reading a judgement, go on national television to condemn the judgment and criticise the judges.
He said that such actions have continued with no sanction.
“If you don’t discipline somebody, nobody will learn any lesson.
“We shall no longer allow our profession to be pulled down. I cannot believe, as a lawyer, that you make a contribution to help the legal profession, and you will be criticised by your fellow lawyers.
“Sir, time has come that we need to say look, enough is enough. We cannot continue to discourage our judges and justices. It is not done anywhere.
“I have never seen where members of a profession are the ones that are bent on bringing the profession down,” he said.
The minister also accused the NBA of describing any support rendered by the executive arm of government to the judicial arm as a bribe.
Wike recalled that when NBA was building its National Secretariat, the leadership wrote to the executive for support, adding that nobody saw that as a bribe.
“I was the only one who contributed to the NBA to build the National Secretariat. The NBA didn’t see it as a bribe.
“When you contribute to the Body of Benchers, it is a bribe, but when you contribute to NBA, it is not a bribe, they will take it.
“The same NBA will rely on state governments to sponsor their activities, but when the state government supports the judiciary it is bribery,” he added.
Wike said that the constant taunting of judges and justices had made them to avoid attending social gatherings or going to church or mosque for fear of molestation.
He added that judges could no longer shake people’s hands freely because lawyers would accuse them of collecting bribes.
“It has gotten to the stage that our Judges are so scared of going to a mosque or church or even greeting somebody they know because of fear of bribery.
“They run away from shaking people’s hands because they will start accusing them of collecting bride. This must stop,” he said
The immediate past Rivers Head of Service, George Nwaeke, has denied claims by his wife, Florence, that he was kidnapped and under duress.
Nwaeke, who recently released chilling allegations against suspended Governor Siminalayi, said contrary to his wife’s emotional outbursts, he was safe in Abuja.
He disclosed that he went to Abuja to voluntarily report himself to security agencies over the ongoing crisis in Rivers State.
The former HoS spoke in a trending video released early hours of Saturday.
He insisted thatwife’s claim was false and suggested that she had been misled and given a script to read.
He said: “I am in Transcorp Abuja. I arrived this morning from Port Harcourt to meet security agencies and report myself, as well as the troubling events happening in Rivers State. I resigned as Head of Service on Monday because of these developments”.
Addressing his wife, he said: “I just saw a video of my wife trending. She was told I had been kidnapped and given a script to read. I want to make it clear—I am not kidnapped. I am in Abuja, working.
“When I was Head of Service, my wife was not involved in my official duties. That script she read is null and void. I am safe and sound. I will report myself to the appropriate security agencies because Abuja houses their headquarters, and I feel safer making my report here.”
ICPC invites Dangote and ex-NMDPRA boss
Pushes ahead despite ex-CEO’s resignation
Raises panel, opens investigation on Monday
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has invited businessman, Aliko Dangote for more information in respect of his petition against the immediate past managing director of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Alhaji Farouk Ahmed.
Dangote is expected to appear or send his lawyer, Ogwu Onoja (SAN) tomorrow when ICPC’s investigation of the petition formally commences.
The commission raised a panel of crack investigators on Friday to handle the probe,
The ICPC ,according to sources ,has asked Dangote to submit his evidence to the anti-graft agency.
Dangote had accused Farouk of corruption and misappropriation of funds, including spending millions of dollars on his four children’s education in expensive and exclusive schools in Switzerland.
The businessman accused Farouk of economic sabotage by undermining domestic refining by colluding with international traders and oil importers through the continued issuance of import licences.
Farouk has since resigned his appointment.
But the commission said it is going ahead with the investigation, Farouk’s resignation notwithstanding.
“All is set for the investigation, ” a well- placed source in ICPC told The Nation yesterday.
“ICPC has set up a panel of crack investigators on Dangote’s petition. The Chairman of the commission, Dr. Musa Adamu Aliyu (SAN) asked the trusted team to stay action on a case and focus on Dangote’s petition. This underscores the importance attached to this case,” the source said.
“We have also invited Dangote or his lawyer to come on Monday to adopt the petition. “Either of them is to present relevant documents or evidence to support the petition.
“He who alleges must prove or provide lead on the allegations which our investigators must act on.
“We have acknowledged the receipt of the petition in line with our guidelines or mandate to do so within 48 hours.”
Continuing, the source said :”after formal adoption of the petition, we will isolate issues and ask Ahmed to respond to the allegations.
“We have been inundated with enquiries but I can assure you that ICPC will be fair to all the parties.”
Responding to a question, the source added: “The resignation of Ahmed does not affect this probe which is in the public interest.”
“Section 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act (ICPC Act 2000) makes it an offence for any public officer to use his/her position to confer an unfair or corrupt advantage on himself, his relatives, associates, or other public officers.Anyone found guilty of any such offence is liable to five years imprisonment without the option of a fine.
“The enabling law also stipulates harsh punishment for individuals deemed to have wasted ICPC’s time and resources by making malicious or frivolous petitions against others.”
In the petition submitted on Tuesday through his lawyer, Ogwu Onoja SAN), Dangote demanded the arrest, investigation and prosecution of Farouk for allegedly living above his means as a public servant.
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He accused Farouk of “spending without evidence of lawful means of income amounting to over $7 million for the education of his four children” in Switzerland.
The document named the children and their schools and provided specific amounts paid for verification.
“Engr Farouk Ahmed spent without evidence of lawful means of income humongous amount of money of over $7million of public funds, for the education of his four children in different schools in Switzerland for a period of six years upfront,” Dangote alleged.
“It is without doubt that the above facts in relation to abuse of office, breach of the Code of Conduct for public officers, corrupt enrichment and embezzlement constitute gross acts of corrupt practices, for which ICPC is statutorily empowered under section 19 of the ICPC Act to investigate and prosecute,” Dangote added.
The cold war between Dangote and petroleum regulators had earlier sparked a N100billion suit.
The Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE filed a N100 billion lawsuit at the Federal High Court in Abuja challenging import licences issued by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and others, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
The refinery accused the regulator of granting licences to import refined petroleum products despite domestic production capacity.
It alleged that the action of the regulator has violated some sections of the Petroleum Industry Act.
The suit, FHC/ABJ/CS/1324/2024, was discontinued in July 2025 by Dangote’s lawyers.
ICPC petition guidelines say: “Any person anywhere in the world may make a complaint against any other person (corporate or non- corporate) in Nigeria, where reasonable grounds exist for suspecting that such a person has conspired to commit or attempted to commit or has committed an offence under the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.
Complaint/petition is made through oral/written report submitted through post, physically to any ICPC office in Nigeria.
A complaint made orally or by an illiterate shall be reduced into writing and read over to the complainant by an officer of the Commission.
The report shall set out details of the complaint , date, time and place where the offence was allegedly committed.
The complainant shall provide the names and addresses, phone number, email and other relevant information that may assist the Commission in locating the person or persons against whom the complaint is made.
The complainant shall state his/her full address, email or phone number or any other information that will assist the commission in contacting him/her, whenever necessary.
Reports can also be made online through any of the commission’s reporting platforms.
The commission shall acknowledge receipt of any petition within 48 hours.
Spokesperson of ICPC , John Okor Odey confirmed that the commission “received a formal petition on Tuesday, 16th December, 2025 from Alhaji Aliko Dangote through his lawyer. The petition is against the CEO of the NMDPRA, Alhaji Farouk Ahmed. The ICPC wishes to state that the petition will be duly investigated.”
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JUST IN : N2.2bn Fraud, Court Upholds Ngige’s EFCC Bail, Insists on Senior Civil Servant as Surety
The Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Gwarinpa, Abuja, on Thursday, granted a former Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, to continue to enjoy the administrative bail earlier granted him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
The trial judge, Justice Maryam Hassan, made the order while delivering a ruling in the bail application filed and argued on behalf of the former minister by his lead counsel, Patrick Ikwueto (SAN).
Justice Hassan in the ruling directed Ngige to produce a surety who must be a director in the employment of the Federal Government and own a landed property.
Justice Hassan ruled that the surety is to deposit the title documents of the landed property, as well as his travel documents, with the court pending the time Ngige completes the retrieval of his own international passport.
The EFCC had previously granted Ngige bail on self-recognition and directed him to submit his travel documents to the commission, in addition to providing one surety.
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Breaking : Tinubu Removes NMDPRA Chiefs Farouk, Komolafe Over Sabotage, Corruption Allegations; Names Replacement
The Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Farouk Ahmed, has resigned.
Similarly, his counterpart at the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Gbenga Komolafe, has stepped down.
Based on the development, President Bola Tinubu has asked the Senate to confirm new chief executives for the two agencies.
The President’s request was contained in separate letters to the Senate on Wednesday.
This was announced in a statement issued by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
Both officials were appointed in 2021 by former President Muhammadu Buhari after the enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act.
According to the statement, Tinubu “has written to the Senate, requesting expedited confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as CEO of NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as CEO of NMDPRA.”
The statement noted that Eyesan, an economist and oil industry veteran, spent nearly 33 years at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and its subsidiaries.
She retired in 2024 as Executive Vice President, Upstream, and previously served as Group General Manager, Corporate Planning and Strategy.
Mohammed, a chemical engineer and former Managing Director of the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company and the Nigerian Gas Company, has also served on several energy sector boards.
He recently emerged as an independent non-executive director at Seplat Energy.
“The two nominees are seasoned professionals in the oil and gas industry,” the statement noted.
Ahmed’s resignation comes amid a high-profile conflict with Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, which drew national attention in December 2025.
The dispute arose from Dangote’s allegations that Ahmed and his family were living beyond their legitimate means, citing millions of dollars allegedly spent on overseas schooling for his four children.
Dangote petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission to investigate and prosecute Ahmed for abuse of office and corrupt enrichment, sparking a nationwide debate over regulatory oversight in Nigeria’s petroleum sector.
The NMDPRA chief dismissed Dangote’s claims as “wild and spurious,” insisting that he would rather defend himself before a formal investigative body than engage in public arguments.
The conflict, which traces its roots to 2024 when Ahmed criticised domestic refinery output—including Dangote’s refinery—prompted intervention by the House of Representatives, which summoned both parties to avoid destabilising the sector.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Wednesday evening met with the embattled Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, at the State House, Abuja.
The meeting came amid allegations of financial impropriety made by industrialist and President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, against the NMDPRA boss.
Dangote and Ahmed have been at odds for a while now over downstream petroleum regulation and the future of domestic refining in Nigeria.
At a press conference on Sunday at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Dangote accused the NMDPRA, under Mr Ahmed’s leadership, of economic sabotage, alleging that regulatory actions were undermining local refining capacity.
He claimed that the continued issuance of import licences for petroleum products was frustrating domestic refiners and deepening Nigeria’s reliance on fuel imports.
The billionaire industrialist further alleged that the regulator was colluding with international traders and petroleum importers to the detriment of local operators, accusations to which the NMDPRA has yet to publicly respond.
Mr Dangote also made personal allegations against the NMDPRA chief, claiming that Mr Ahmed was living beyond his legitimate means.
He alleged that four of Mr Ahmed’s children attend secondary schools in Switzerland at costs running into several millions of dollars, arguing that such expenditure raised concerns about conflicts of interest and the integrity of regulatory oversight in the downstream petroleum sector.
On Monday, Mr Dangote escalated the claims, accusing Mr Ahmed of corruption and misappropriation of public funds.
He alleged that about $5 million was spent on the secondary education and upkeep of the children over six years, with an additional $2 million on tertiary education, including an alleged $210,000 for a 2025 Harvard MBA programme for one of them.
The controversy deepened on Tuesday when Mr Dangote, through his lawyer, Ogwu Onoja, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), calling for Mr Ahmed’s arrest, investigation, and prosecution.
In the petition addressed to ICPC Chairman Musa Aliyu, Mr Dangote alleged that the NMDPRA chief “spent without evidence of lawful means of income amounting to over $7 million for the education of his four children” in Switzerland.
The petition reportedly included the names of the children, the schools attended, and detailed figures for verification.
Mr Ahmed arrived at the Presidential Villa at about 5:30 p.m. and left the President’s office after less than 30 minutes.
He declined to speak with journalists as he exited the State House and offered no comment on the allegations or the outcome of his meeting with President Tinubu.
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