Former Governor of Rivers State, Rufus Ada George, has been challenged to list a single positive development he brought to the state, other than an alleged introduction of violence and ethnic politics.

This challenge was issued by the media aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, Lere Olayinka, on Thursday.

In a statement he signed, Olayinka said it was on record that the only impact that can be linked to George was the introduction of “Bush Boys” militant group, which he used to settle political scores.

According to Olayinka: “At old age, people should begin to desist from acting shamelessly.

“After leaving office as Governor in 1993, what happened to his relationship with Dr Peter Odili, who was his deputy? Why did he not support Odili for governor in 1999 and 2003? Why was he in All People’s Party (APP) while Odili was in People’s Democratic Party (PDP)?

“Records of his involvement in the activities of the Bush Boys are well documented in the report of the 2008 Justice Kayode Eso led Rivers State Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which heard accusations that he (Ada George) sponsored the Bush Boys in the September 2001 violence.

“As a former Governor of Rivers State, he could not reconcile the warring Okrika factions, reason they didn’t have an Amayanabo until Wike became governor. Rather than resolve the chieftaincy crisis, Ada George took side and used his Bush Boys militant group against those against his preferred candidate.

“As Rivers State Governor, in 1993, when violence ensued in the Ogoni people’s protest against exploitation by Shell, Ada George took side with his former employer against the Ogoni people.

“That’s the person of Ada George, who was among those who took side with the suspended Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara when he threw rule of law to the dogs and was boasting that the State House of Assembly and its members existed only because he wanted them to exist.

“He never for once told Fubara the truth that it was illegal to run a House of Assembly of 32 members with just three members and that it the height of wickedness to deny fellow indigenes of Rivers State their entitlements, thereby making it difficult for to feed and take care of their wives and children.

“Today, at close to 85 years, the same Ada George, who was urging Fubara on in his regime of lawlessness, is addressing the press and advertising his shamelessly by accusing the FCT Minister of being behind the political crisis in Rivers State, including the imposition of a state of emergency and the appointment of sole administrators in all 23 local government areas.

“One wonders where he kept his position as an elder when members of the State House of Assembly, who are indigenes of Rivers State were deprived of their salary and other entitlements by Fubara.

“Also, did the same Ada George, not say that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was a ‘meddlesome interloper who engaged in executive rascality by intervening in the crisis and reaching amicable resolutions that all parties signed?’

“Therefore, Ada George is advised to for once, be circumspect and stop advertising shamelessness at old age.”

Former President Muhammadu Buhari has fulfilled the constitutional requirement to declare his assets, both at the start and end of his presidency.

In a gesture of transparency, he voluntarily made his assets public in June 2015, despite not being legally obligated to do so.

Assets Declared

Real Estate: Houses in Kaduna, Daura, Abuja, and Kano, as well as a plot of land in Port Harcourt, with no foreign properties.

Farms and Livestock: Farmlands in Daura with 270 cows, 25 sheep, 5 horses, and various poultry, along with economic trees and crops like maize, millet, and sorghum.

Vehicles: One Mercedes-Benz, one Toyota Land Cruiser, and two cars purchased from his savings.

Financial Assets:  Approximately N30 million in his bank account, with no foreign bank accounts, oil wells, business stakes, shares, bonds, or private company ownership.

Compliance with Asset Declaration Law
The Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) is responsible for overseeing asset declarations in Nigeria.

According to the Constitution, public officials must declare their assets and liabilities upon assuming office and upon leaving.

Buhari’s decision to publicly disclose his assets was seen as a move towards transparency, following in the footsteps of former President Umaru Yar’Adua, who also made his asset declaration public in 2007 ².

A staunch supporter of President Bola Tinubu, Reno Omokri on Thursday lashed out at Labour Party’s former presidential candidate, Peter Obi for saying Nigeria is collapsing under Tinubu.

Omokri said it’s Obi’s presidential ambition that has collapsed and not Nigeria.

He noted that Obi’s outing at the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, on Thursday showed that he has lost control of LP.

Obi alongside Governor Alex Otti of Abia State and some factional members of LP had stormed INEC’s headquarters to submit the Supreme Court’s judgment that sacked Julius Abure as the party’s National Chairman.

Prior to the visit, Obi while speaking at LP’s National Executive Committee, NEC, meeting had said Nigeria is in a state of collapse and urgently needs to be salvaged.

Reacting, Omokri described Obi as being bitter and deliberately choosing to be blinded to the fact that Nigeria is expanding and not collapsing.

Posting on X, Omokri wrote: “No Bitter Obi, Nigeria is not collapsing. Instead, we are expanding. But bitter Agbotikuyo people like you are deliberately blind to it. For the first time ever, the Central Bank of Nigeria just posted a record surplus of $6.89 billion. Coming from a bank that used to post a $2 billion quarterly deficit under Buhari, that is expansion.

“Nigeria’s GDP grew by 3.84% in 2024, overtaking the U.S. and UK. That is expansion, not collapse.

“Lagos State’s economy grew from $100 billion under Buhari to $259 billion under Tinubu, despite you and Maryanne Moghalu championing “Invest in Lagos at your own peril”. That is expansion, not contraction, Peteru!

“The combination of the removal of fuel subsidies, flotation of the Naira, and reduction of our national debt has led to a situation where food prices are dropping slightly. At the same time, inflation reduced seismically from 34.80% to 24.48% in February 2025.

“That is granular and statistical evidence of expansion, not collapse.

“Under Tinubu, your state, Anambra, now receives almost triple what it got under Buhari. If you think that is a collapse, please urge your Governor to return the difference to the Federal Government.

“And finally, the value of your shares in a bank, which I will not mention, increases by a factor of three. Which means that even you are richer because of Tinubu!

“In conclusion, Peteru, the only thing that has collapsed is your Presidential ambition, as your desperate outing at the INEC yesterday showed. You have lost control of your party and are now displaying symptoms of losing control of your mind.”