The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Diepreye Alamieyeseigha

  • Credit for Alamieyeseigha’s pardon belongs to Yar’Adua, not Jonathan

    Hon. Stephen Adika Ereboh is a former Majority Leader of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly. In this interview with our South-south Bureau Chief, BISI OLANIYI, the astute businessman and governorship aspirant denies the allegation in some quarters that he deliberately set out to marry the daughter of former Bayelsa State governor, Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, in order to gain power and influence. He also relives his ordeal during the money laundering allegation against Alamieyeseigha, which eventually culminated in his impeachment while Ereboh held sway as majority leader.

    How were your growing up days? I was born and bred in Lagos. I attended Christ the King School, Olodi-Apapa, Lagos. I started my secondary education at Araromi Grammar School, now Sari-Iganmu High School, Lagos, before my father, Meshack Ereboh, now late, was moved to Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital. I continued my secondary education at Ennitonna High School, Port Harcourt before proceeding to the Rivers State University of Science and Technology {RSUST), now Rivers State University (RSU), Port Harcourt, for my bachelor’s and master’s degrees.

    The first time I went to Amassoma was when we lost our grandmother. I was in secondary school then. We travelled by boat and it was very exciting. In those days in Maroko, Lagos, we used to cross the river by boat during Christmas while visiting relatives. So, travelling to Amassoma by boat was not a new experience for me.

    Now with road to Amassoma, it saves time and it attracts infrastructure and social amenities. As God would have it, the pioneer civilian Governor of Bayelsa State, the late Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, established Niger Delta University (NDU) on Wilberforce Island, with the take-off campus in Amassoma, the hometown of Chief Alamieyeseigha, thereby bringing about development. Amassoma is now a cosmopolitan community, not a rural setting or village. Many non-indigenes now own property in the university town.

    Will it be right to say that you grew up with a silver spoon?

    I was born into a comfortable and stable family. My father was the Dredging Operations Superintendent with Westminster Dredging Company in Lagos. We (the children) attended good schools.

    What of your mother?

    My mother, Mrs. Akisi Ereboh (nee Dikibo), now late, was a full-time housewife, taking care of the home front, because my father never wanted my mother to work.

    You are married to a lawyer, Esther Aihimegbe Ereboh, who works with the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF). Is there any chance you will emulate your father by asking your wife to stop work and become a full-time housewife?

    I will not criticise what my father did. My father believed strongly that if both of them were out working, the home front would suffer. I know of highly respected families today, with well-educated couples, who decide to come to a compromise that both husband and wife will not work, with the wife agreeing to stay fully at home to take care of the children, but with the husbands paying their wives special monthly allowances, the equivalent of their salaries, besides the usual upkeep allowances.

    My uncle, the late Chief A. K. Dikibo (a former National Vice Chairman, South-south of the Peoples Democratic Party), did not allow his wife, a professional, to work but to take care of the home front, even while they were in England and Lagos, before they later returned to Port Harcourt. Today, the wife is a lecturer in a university in South Africa.

    My wife and I will sit down and agree/reach a compromise, because our kids are growing up. What my father did by not allowing my mother to work, I am a product of it, and I fully enjoyed it. Getting back to the house from school in Lagos, you must submit your notebooks to my mother, who would check the dates to be sure you were in class and to make sure all the assignments were done. To my mother, every school work must be dated for her confirmation of attendance and staying in class to be taught by the teachers.

    You must also never bring things that never belonged to you to the house. No child would try it in our house. My mother had time to adequately discipline the children at home, while my father would be at work in order to provide for the family. If a child returned home dirty, he or she must explain and also forcibly learn how to wash the clothes with cane from my mother. So, we were always very careful to avoid being punished or caned by my mother, who was always at home. There was no way for the children to play pranks.

    A former governor of Rivers State, Dr. Peter Odili, was using a private jet to drop his wife, Justice Mary Odili (now Justice of the Supreme Court) in Abuja for sittings of the court and to immediately fly her back to Port Harcourt after sittings to take care of the home front. Sir Peter Odili confirmed it in his book. It takes two persons (husband and wife) cooperating to build a family. The products of the family will be a selling point to the society and the children will be more responsible and contribute more meaningfully to societal development.

    You attended RSUST, now RSU, Port Harcourt, between 1992 and 1997, where you graduated with B.Sc. degree in Business Administration (Marketing Option). In 2000, still at RSUST, you obtained a master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA). Did you experience sorting, because it is alleged that RSUST/RSU is notorious for sorting through sex, cash or gifts?

    I will only speak of my time at RSUST, because we are worthy in character and learning. I did not experience sorting. What happened after I graduated, I cannot vouch for. Won’t you be shocked to hear that now, even in private universities in Nigeria, sorting takes place? I know of many compromised private universities in Nigeria, but I will not mention names. It is that bad. But some universities still stand out and they will never allow sorting, with indicted lecturers and students regularly being expelled or suspended to serve as a deterrent to others and sanitise the system.

    In 2003, you were elected into the Bayelsa State House of Assembly to represent Southern Ijaw Constituency 1, and you were subsequently elected as the Majority Leader. How was the experience?

    It was an awesome experience before the ugly incident (the arrest in London of the then Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha and his eventual removal on December 9, 2005). Because at that time, I was faced with the onerous task of being the go-between between the executive and the legislature.

    In 2005, there was political crisis in Bayelsa State with the arrest of the then governor, Chief Diepreye Alamisyeseigha, in London for money laundering, and his eventual removal on December 9, 2005. How did you navigate it, considering the fact that the late Chief Alamieyeseigha was your father-in-law?

    It is not an experience I will like to talk about.

    Is it true, as being insinuated, that the then Governor Alamieyeseigha disguised and dressed as a woman to escape in London and surprisingly appeared in Bayelsa State, which angered the then President OlusegunObasanjo?

    The then Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha did not dress like a woman to return to Nigeria from London.

    Then as Majority Leader of Bayelsa State House of Assembly when the 2005 crisis erupted, how did you feel, especially with Chief Alamieyeseigha as your father-in-law?

    The late Chief Alamieyeseigha was not just my father-in-law, he was my big brother, because we are indigenes of Amassoma. I made my position clear, even when I visited him in London and I came back, that his arrest was illegal.

    Did you also sign the impeachment notice of Alamieyeseigha in the office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)?

    God forbid. I did not sign the impeachment notice. I was not a party to it. I challenge anybody to prove me wrong. I was not with the other Bayelsa State’s lawmakers when the then governor was impeached. The Bayelsa State House of Assembly complex was cordoned off by fully-armed security personnel and prepared for the lawmakers who were involved in the act. Six of us (lawmakers) were not allowed into the Assembly complex by the unfriendly security personnel, while 18 other lawmakers had a field day. I was suspended for more than six months in the second Assembly after my statement that the London arrest of the then Governor Alamieyeseigha was illegal and that his eventual impeachment was unconstitutional. During the suspension, all my statutory allowances were denied me. When I later returned to the House of Assembly, I was a member of the House of Assembly and no longer the Majority Leader. It was an ugly experience.

    It was much later that I got to know the architects of the acts (arrest in London of the then Governor Alamieyeseigha and his impeachment). I will not mention names, but they know themselves. They simply ganged up against Chief Alamieyeseigha.

    At the risk of losing my life, I stood my ground. Nemesis is now catching up with them. What goes around comes around. We must always remember that power comes from God. Always look at the spiritual side of life. It is also not good to be willing tools in the hands of some very-powerful and highly-influential persons.

    Will it be right to say that your refusal to support the removal of the then governor made it impossible for you to be re-elected/allowed to return to the Bayelsa State House of Assembly in 2007?

    I wanted to go back and be part of the third Assembly, but the pre-condition was that all the lawmakers who were not part of the impeachment of Chief Alamieyeseigha should not be allowed to return to the Bayelsa State House of Assembly. At that time, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan (who later became Vice-President and President of Nigeria) was the governor of Bayelsa State. They had a meeting in the governor’s office, which was attended by Senator David Brigidi (now late) and other Bayelsa leaders of PDP.

    Have you forgotten that the then President Goodluck Jonathan eventually pardoned Chief Alamieyeseigha?

    I do not know about pardon, because Chief Alamieyeseigha, after the crisis, said the pardon was pre-arranged by the former President Umaru Yar’Adua. He said Yar’Adua actually pardoned him.

    It was insinuated that you got married to the stepdaughter of the then Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha for power, money and influence, especially to ensure your election into the Bayelsa State House of Assembly in 2003. Is it true?

    It is complete falsehood. I mooted the idea of taking part in the 2003 House of Assembly election in year 2000. The current Bayelsa State Commissioner for Education, Hon. Jonathan Obuebite, a former Bayelsa State Commissioner for Information, is one of my witnesses. Hon. Jonathan Obuebite and I were doing our MBA together at the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST), now Rivers State University (RSU), Port Harcourt, and we were always teasing each other that after the MBA, we would go to Bayelsa, with the creation of the state from the old Rivers state on October 1, 1996. Both of us were not married then.

    My late uncle, Chief A. K. Dikibo, was the National Vice Chairman, South-South of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at that time. Chief Dikibo took over when Chief Marshall Harry died. I then started nursing the ambition to contest as a member of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, and I started campaigning. I met my former (first) wife through my younger cousin, Janet, who, unfortunately, is late. My former wife is now married to someone else. So, I do not want to talk about her. She is now somebody’s wife and I must respect the marriage and the new couple.

    While campaigning and I met my former wife, whose name I will not mention, I told her I would not marry her, so that tomorrow, some people would not say it was because of election that I opted to marry her. The matter eventually became a family problem. I was summoned by her mother, Chief Margaret Alamieyeseigha, who asked whether I wanted to live my life to please the world. She said that whatever people would say should not bother me and should not be my business. She asked me to stick to the relationship.

    It was through the efforts and intervention of my uncle, the late Chief A.K. Dikibo and Chief Margaret Alamieyeseigha that we eventually got married, as they were very supportive to my cause, because Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha never wanted us to get married. Let me not talk. If I open up, it will hurt a lot of people. Many of them are now married.

    What went wrong with your first marriage, so that the younger ones can learn from it?

    My first marriage was broken beyond redemption, because of irreconcilable differences. I later discovered a lot of things after my first marriage. Do not force me to open up, because she is now married to another man, and I do not want the marriage to be affected. We were separated by the court. The marriage was dissolved in 2007. I still have copies of the court’s proceedings, which I will not make public. Please, respect my opinion.

    I was working with DHL Worldwide in Port Harcourt when I met my former wife. The insinuation of marrying her because of money, influence and power, because her stepfather, Chief Alamieyeseigha, was Bayelsa state governor, is not correct. I did not do jamboree with my money. I started the estate in Yenagoa being appreciated today from two plots of land. God opened my way when Julius Berger Construction Company had issue with Camp Porbeni in Yenagoa and officials of the construction giant were looking for a place to move in. They moved into my property in Yenagoa and the company paid handsomely. We started expanding the estate. As at that time, it was N270,000 per plot. I approached the community chief and he was willing to sell the large expanse of land to the expressway.

    The late Chief Alamieyeseigha did not give me one extra kobo for marrying his stepdaughter. All the then 24 members of Bayelsa State House of Assembly were treated equally by the then governor (Alamieyeseigha). Lawmakers also had the opportunity of attending conferences, with money approved for the trips, and I made sure I managed my funds very well, ploughing back the remnants into sand and cement.

    You are now happily married to Barr. Esther Aihimegbe Ereboh, and you are blessed with two children despite the initial insinuation that you could not father a child, having allegedly used your manhood for ritual. How did you meet your new wife and what was the attraction?

    (Laughs) I met my wife while she was studying Law at the Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma in Edo State, and in her final year. She is a very beautiful lady that any man would be attracted to. She is also very intelligent and a much calmer person, with good parental upbringing. We met at a function in Bayelsa State.

    How did you propose to her?

    I told her straight that I wanted to marry her. She said I barely knew her, but I asked her not to worry, that my mind was made up. We dated for about two years and we consummated our marriage in her Ekpoma hometown in Edo State in October, 2010. As at the time we wedded, she had already been called to the Bar. I am happy. I have peace.

    You earlier worked for A. Michelleti Nigeria Limited, a construction giant and DHL Worldwide, a leading courier company, both in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital. You are also an astute businessman, based in Abuja and an articulate politician. How many Bayelsans, especially the youths, have you empowered, as you are aspiring to be governor?

    God exposed me to the construction industry with my experience in A. Michelleti Nigeria Limited for nine years making me to look like a builder. I worked for DHL Worldwide for three years. When I became a member of Bayelsa State House of Assembly, I deployed every kobo I had, with bank facilities, in building property. As at the time I was leaving the House of Assembly, I ventured fully into real estate business.

    As a lawmaker, I gave 250 persons from my Southern Ijaw Constituency 1, consisting of Amassoma, Otuan and Amatolo, on full scholarships in secondary schools, besides the over 20 persons that I directly supported in the Niger Delta University (NDU). And I still have others that I am training, with one of them being a final year student at Igbinedion University in Okada, Edo State.

    I also embarked on many outstanding development projects in the three communities making up the constituency. I am still empowering many Bayelsans, but I avoid blowing my trumpet. If I start to give the details, this interview will take the whole day. I do not have difficulty in assisting people.

    You intend to be the Governor of Bayelsa State on the platform of the governing Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state and to participate in the governorship election on November 16, 2019. Are you not bothered that PDP in Bayelsa is in crisis? Besides, how can you defeat formidable aspirants like Chief Timi Alaibe, Keniebi Okoko, Reuben Okoya, Senator Emmanuel Paulker, Dr. Godknows Igali, Joshua Macaiver, Peremobowei Ebebi, BekesEtifa, Fred Agbedi and Franklin Osaisai, among others, in the primaries?

    What makes the other governorship aspirants better than me? Some of them are seasonal contestants, who have been jumping from one political party to another since 1999. They cannot be described as more experienced or more formidable. Any aspirant can drop names, but let us wait and see who is actually on the ground in Bayelsa State.

    I am in the race and I should be identified as Hon. Steve Ereboh, without dropping anybody’s name. Just imagine some of them seeking the endorsement of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Governor Henry Seriake Dickson and other incumbent governors of neighbouring states. I have no names to drop. I have served my state very well and I have a scorecard to brandish to my people.

    I cannot equate myself with anybody. I am in the governorship race to serve my people again in a higher capacity. I am not competing with anybody. The electorate will decide. I can assure you that I will win the primary election of PDP and later defeat the candidates of other political parties during the general election.

    I have a manifesto/blueprint for the commensurate development of Bayelsa State. I am not in the race to negotiate to be commissioner or special adviser to the governor. I am not looking for settlement. Everybody has records of service, which will be considered by the delegates during primaries and the electorate during the general election.

  • I won’t quit PDP even if I lose ticket – Bafarawa

    Aspirant seeks Jonathan’s support 

     

    A presidential aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa on Friday said he would remain in the party even if he failed to clinch the PDP’s presidential ticket.

    Bafarawa spoke in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, when he visited former President Goodluck Jonathan to seek his advice, support and blessing.

    Bafarawa, a former Governor of Sokoto State, expressed confidence that the PDP would wrest power from President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.

    He described himself as a selfless democrat adding that never believed in do-or-die politics but saw politics as a game.

    Bafarawa said: “I am here (Bayelsa) because former President Goodluck Jonathan is a democrat of Africa, not only in Nigeria. I believe that anybody who is aspiring for anythng in the political arena in this country must come and seek his advice, his support and his blessing.

    “That is why I am here. He is a democrat; he knows what it takes to run the government of this country. He is a peaceful and godly man, so there is no way we can run away from coming to seek his blessing.

    “I am a democrat. I see politics as a game. Just like Jonathan, he has not been defeated but because he needs peace of the country he accepted a defeat to allow peace to reign. So, I did not join politics for the sake of personal interest, so that if I lose I will leave the party.

    “I have been in politics for the past 40 years and I have been in high positions, so I am not here to make money but I think I am a democrat to serve the people. So, I will remain in PDP because PDP is not a limited liability company like the All Progressives Congress.

    “Our common objective is to get President Muhammadu Buhari out of power. Therefore, any serious political party in this country is determined to see that in 2019, Buhari has left office so that we will move our country forward.”

    In his remarks, Jonathan said Bafarawa came to brief him about his presidential interest and political developments in the country.

    He described Bafarawa as an experienced politician, saying the former governor remained consistent since he joined the PDP Iin 2014.

    The former President described the increasing number of presidential aspirants in PDP as a welcome development.

    Read Also: Bafarawa and PDP presidential crowd

    Jonathan said: “Bafarawa is somebody I know very well. He has been involved in politics even before I got involved in politics. And from when I came in as deputy governor to Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, he was the governor of Sokoto State. So we were working with them.

    “So, since that time till when he joined PDP in 2014, he did not join PDP because he wanted to be President because I was contesting Presidency. That was when he joined PDP to support me and became a member of the party. So, if today he is interested, he has a lot of experience.

    “So, we want the best for the country. Just as he said,  we need this country to grow, especially for the younger ones. I always insist that as leaders, we must plan for our grandchildren; we do not have to plan four ourselves.

    “Societies that plan for their grandchildren grow; societies that plan for themselves will crash because you will be in a hurry, but when you are planning for your grandchildren, you take time and do things properly and of course, the society will improve. He is one of those people that plan because he has done it in Sokoto State. He is a nice man.

    “A number of people have asked me this question and I say, the more people that are interested, the better for the party. If you have only two aspirants, the division between the two camps will be so bad, not from the candidates themselves, but supporters of the candidates will be exchanging all kinds of bitterness and at the end of the day, one must lose and those people will feel that they do not belong to the system and that they will not be accepted. There will be tendency for them to leave.”

    He called for a level-playing field for all aspirants in party primaries, saying “when party candidate emerges through transparent process, there would not be bickering and division in the party”.

    Jonathan added: “But when there are more aspirants and the party does what is right, the key thing is level-playing field for every aspirant. When the party makes sure that the field is level for every aspirant and the best person among them emerges, they will all work for the party.

    “When there are only two aspirants, they start throwing stones but when there are many, who will you throw the stone at because they are many, you do not even know who will take the day.

    “So to me it is better to have many aspirants. As leaders, we are talking. Before the primaries, I believe we will talk to the aspirants to ensure that things are done in a way that everybody will be happy. The key thing is not the aspirants, but during the primary, we must make sure that the ground is level and nobody will leave the party out of anger.”

  • Diepreye Alamieyeseigha (1952 – 2015)

    Diepreye Alamieyeseigha (1952 – 2015)

    • A lesson in legacy and democracy

    It is a telling lesson on the importance of positive performance in power that former Bayelsa State Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha reportedly rushed back to the country from Dubai,  where he was receiving medical attention, out of fear of extradition to the UK to face corruption-related charges. His death at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital on October 10, aged 62, seemed like the culmination of insecurity out of power, though official sources said he “died of complications arising from high blood pressure and diabetes which affected his kidney.”

    No less a person than Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson confirmed that a feeling of insecurity was a major factor in the tragedy. Seriake said in an emotional state broadcast that reflected the sense of loss of Alamieyeseigha’s Ijaw ethnic group: “We acknowledge the anger, the genuine sense of anger and disappointment, and the outrage held by our people at home and in the Diaspora and all well-meaning Nigerians and lovers of justice around the world for the way our leader was harassed, pounded and forced to abandon his treatment abroad. We condemn…the propaganda and the orchestrated harassment that led to his untimely death.”

    It is noteworthy that, in the end, a controversial 2013  state pardon of Alamieyeseigha by former President Goodluck Jonathan proved inadequate to redeem him as he remained wanted in the UK  where he was facing money-laundering charges but escaped mysteriously to safety in Nigeria. It is understandable that he was still haunted by the possibility of prosecution in London, after jumping bail in 2005, and got jittery in Dubai following reports that the UK had requested his extradition.

    Alamieyeseigha came to politics from a military background, having been trained at the Nigerian Defence Academy. He retired from the Air Force in 1992 as a Squadron Leader. His reelection as governor in 2003 on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), after a four-year term, resulted in an unravelling from which he never recovered.

    There is no question that Alamieyeseigha who governed oil-rich Bayelsa State from 1999 to 2005 was stained by official corruption. While still in office, he had one million

    British pounds stashed in his London residence; the loot was discovered during a search by London Metropolitan Police. Another hefty sum of almost two million British pounds was found in his bank account in the UK.

    He lost his governorship position when he dramatically surfaced in Nigeria and was impeached by the Bayelsa State House of Assembly. His subsequent prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) resulted in a plea bargain after he pleaded guilty to theft of public funds and money laundering. He forfeited money and property to the government, and got a two-year jail sentence in 2007.  He reportedly spent no more than two days in the cage post-sentence, having been held in detention for two years since his apprehension.

    Notwithstanding the foregoing, the man famously called “Governor General of the Ijaw Kingdom” was intriguingly hero-worshipped by the Ijaw people. He was credited with the establishment of the state-owned Niger Delta University and enjoyed the confidence of Ijaw nationalists. It would appear that, to his ethnic group, his failure to achieve socio-economic development that matched the state’s rich resources was a pardonable inadequacy.

    From a more objective viewpoint, Alamieyeseigha’s power years cannot be described as exemplary, particularly in a country faced with serious developmental challenges. He may not have appreciated the virtue of spending public money for public purposes. His legacy is not an edifying lesson. He proved not to be the kind of political leader that should be emulated.

  • Diepreye Alamieyeseigha (1952 – 2015)

    A lesson in legacy and democracy

    IT is a telling lesson on the importance of positive performance in power that former Bayelsa State Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha reportedly rushed back to the country from Dubai,  where he was receiving medical attention, out of fear of extradition to the UK to face corruption-related charges. His death at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital on October 10, aged 62, seemed like the culmination of insecurity out of power, though official sources said he “died of complications arising from high blood pressure and diabetes which affected his kidney.”

    No less a person than Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson confirmed that a feeling of insecurity was a major factor in the tragedy. Seriake said in an emotional state broadcast that reflected the sense of loss of Alamieyeseigha’s Ijaw ethnic group: “We acknowledge the anger, the genuine sense of anger and disappointment, and the outrage held by our people at home and in the diaspora and all well-meaning Nigerians and lovers of justice around the world for the way our leader was harassed, pounded and forced to abandon his treatment abroad. We condemn…the propaganda and the orchestrated harassment that led to his untimely death.”

    It is noteworthy that, in the end, a controversial 2013  state pardon of Alamieyeseigha by former President Goodluck Jonathan proved inadequate to redeem him as he remained wanted in the UK  where he was facing money-laundering charges but escaped mysteriously to safety in Nigeria. It is understandable that he was still haunted by the possibility of prosecution in London, after jumping bail in 2005, and got jittery in Dubai following reports that the UK had requested his extradition.

    Alamieyeseigha came to politics from a military background, having been trained at the Nigerian Defence Academy. He retired from the Air Force in 1992 as a Squadron Leader. His re-election as governor in 2003 on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), after a four-year term, resulted in an unravelling from which he never recovered.

    There is no question that Alamieyeseigha who governed oil-rich Bayelsa State from 1999 to 2005 was stained by official corruption. While still in office, he had one million British pounds stashed in his London residence; the loot was discovered during a search by London Metropolitan Police. Another hefty sum of almost two million British pounds was found in his bank account in the UK.

    He lost his governorship position when he dramatically surfaced in Nigeria and was impeached by the Bayelsa State House of Assembly. His subsequent prosecution by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) resulted in a plea bargain after he pleaded guilty to theft of public funds and money laundering. He forfeited money and property to the government, and got a two-year jail sentence in 2007.  He reportedly spent no more than two days in the cage post-sentence, having been held in detention for two years since his apprehension.

    Notwithstanding the foregoing, the man famously called “Governor General of the Ijaw Kingdom” was intriguingly hero-worshipped by the Ijaw. He was credited with the establishment of the state-owned Niger Delta University and enjoyed the confidence of Ijaw nationalists. It would appear that, to his ethnic group, his failure to achieve socio-economic development that matched the state’s rich resources was a pardonable inadequacy.

    From a more objective viewpoint, Alamieyeseigha’s power years cannot be described as exemplary, particularly in a country faced with serious developmental challenges. He may not have appreciated the virtue of spending public money for public purposes. His legacy is not an edifying lesson. He proved not to be the kind of political leader that should be emulated.

  • Alamieyeseigha abandoned medical trip midway – Dickson

    Alamieyeseigha abandoned medical trip midway – Dickson

    The Governor of Bayelsa State, Mr. Seriake Dickson, on Tuesday confirmed that the late former Governor of the state, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, abandoned his foreign medical trip midway.

    The governor, who spoke in an emotion-laden state broadcast in Yenagoa, said the former governor who died at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) on Saturday, was a victim of orchestrated harassment.

    Though the governor did not mention forces behind the harassment, he said the mistreatment led to the untimely death of the Ijaw hero.

    Dickson apparently alluded to insinuations that the purported extradition request by Britain forced Alamieyeseigha to abandon his medical trip and led to health complications that killed him.

    He warned against politicising Alamieyeseigha’s death, saying the incident should unite instead of dividing the Ijaw nation.

    He said: “We acknowledged the genuine sense of anger and disappointment and  the sense of outrage held by our people  at home and in the Diaspora and all well meaning Nigerians and  lovers of justice around the world about the way and manner  our leader was harassed,  pounded and forced to abandon his treatment abroad.

    “We condemn in very strong terms the propaganda and the orchestrated harassment that led to his untimely death. However, we are pleading that this is not a time for recrimination and divisions.

    “This is rather a time for unity and for sober reflection. I therefore called for all and sundry particularly the youths of this state and all Niger Deltans and the Ijaw nation to remain calm and maintain the peace as we all unite and mourn our departed leader.

    “I advice that we refrain from politicizing our collective tragedy. This is a collective tragedy and we should not politicize it. I advice that we join hands with the family to mourn with them and grieve with them and grieve with one another and work with the family and  the government  to ensure that we give him what he rightly deserved, that is a befitting state funeral.”

     

  • Alamieyeseigha records landmark achievements – Igbinedion

    Former Governor of Edo State, Chief Lucky Igbinedion, has said the late Diepreye Alamieyeseigha recorded landmark achievements during his tenure as Governor of Bayelsa State.

    Igbinedion in a condolence message to the Ijaw nation said the death of Alamieyeseigha was a greater loss to the Ijaw people across the country.

    The ex-Edo governor noted that Alamieyeseigha laid the foundation for the steady growth of Bayelsa on which successive administrations in the state have built on.

    “No doubt, his wealth of experience and untiring fighting spirit could have charted a peaceful path to a new era of peace, unity and progress of Ijaw people.”

    “Alamieyeseigha can be singled out for his boldness, humility, large heart and willingness to forgive his loathsome adversaries. These are uncommon traits of Nigerian politicians.”

  • ‘Alamieyeseigha was on life support before death’

    ‘Alamieyeseigha was on life support before death’

    Former Governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, was on a life support before he finally died at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH), Rivers State, on Saturday.

    A family source, who spoke in confidence, said the hospital removed the life support after it could no longer sustain the former governor.

    “He was on a life support but it was later discovered that the machine could no longer sustain him. I was there when it was removed. He was then certified dead,” he said.

    He said the deceased’s family members decided to stay back at their Port Harcourt home following the circumstances that led to his death.

    He, however, confirmed that the wife of the deceased and her children are expected to return to their home in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, later on Monday.

    “They will be receiving guests and sympathisers at their Yenagoa home temporarily after which they will go to their community home in Amasomma, Southern Ijaw local government area of Bayelsa,” he added.

  • Bayelsa declares seven-day mourning for Alamieyeseigha

    The Bayelsa State Government on Monday declared a seven- day mourning in honour of a former Governor of the state, Chief Diepreye  Alamieyeseigha, who died last Saturday at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH).

    A statement signed by Mr. Daniel Iworiso-Markson, the Chief Press Secretary to the state Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson, directed that all flags in all public buildings and premises across the state be flown at half mast for the period.

    According to the statement, the mourning period started on Monday.

    It added that condolence registers had been opened in Government House and the state Secretariat.

  • PDP mourns Alamieyeseigha

    The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is grief stricken over the death on Saturday of a former Governor of Bayelsa state, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha.

    A statement issued on Sunday by the PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, said the party was still in shock over death of the former governor, describing the development as deeply saddening.

    “The PDP mourns the demise of this great Nigerian, who made immense contributions and sacrifices towards the unity, stability and development of his state and our dear nation both as a military officer and a politician.

    “Chief Alamieyeseigha was a true democrat, humble leader, brilliant administrator who had extraordinary love for his people. He was an outstanding party-man, who, despite his travails, remained loyal to the PDP at state and national levels to the very end.

    “The PDP sincerely commiserates with Governor Seriake Dickson, the Alamieyeseigha family, the Ijaw kingdom and the people of Bayelsa state and pray God to give them the fortitude to bear this great loss.”

  • Alamieyeseigha’s death a personal loss – Dickson

    Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, has described the death of Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, the first civilian governor of the state, as a personal loss to him, the government and people of the state.

    The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Alamieyeseigha died at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital on Saturday evening.

    Dickson, in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Iworiso-Markson, said Alamieyeseigha was a strong supporter of his administration.

    He added that Alamieyeseigha’s demise was a very painful and monumental loss to the entire Ijaw nation, which he had always defended.

    The Bayelsa governor also commiserated with the deceased’s wife, Margaret, his immediate family, and the entire people of the state, noting that the Ijaws had lost a “rare gem.”