ABUJA — The Senate has confirmed President Bola Tinubu’s nominees for key positions across four Rivers State agencies, including the controversial appointment of Dr. Michael Odeh, a Cross River State indigene, as Chairman of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC).
The confirmation, which followed the presentation of a screening report by Senate Leader and Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee on Emergency Rule in Rivers, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central), sparked heated debate and sharp divisions on the Senate floor.
Odeh’s appointment, made under the emergency administrative arrangement in Rivers, drew immediate backlash from opposition lawmakers, who accused the Federal Government of undermining local autonomy and imposing outsiders on the state.
“You mean to tell us that in all of Rivers State, no one is qualified to conduct their own elections?” queried Senator Abdul Ningi (PDP, Bauchi Central), describing the decision as both inappropriate and inflammatory.
Senators linked Odeh’s nomination to a broader political strategy, noting his shared state of origin with the sole administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, appointed by the presidency to oversee Rivers State during the emergency rule.
While Bamidele defended the nominations, arguing that no constitutional provisions were breached and that all nominees passed security screenings, his assurances did little to calm tensions. Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin cited precedents of inter-state appointments, but critics insisted this case represented a dangerous overreach.
“This is not neutrality; it is domination dressed in law,” said Senator Ali Ndume (APC, Borno South). Senate Minority Leader Abba Moro echoed similar sentiments, warning that the move risked escalating the already delicate political situation in Rivers.
Despite the fierce resistance, the Senate confirmed Odeh’s appointment along with others, including: Dr. Barikor Baribuma as Chairman, Rivers State Civil Service Commission, Israel Amadi as Chairman, Rivers State Local Government Service Commission, Dr. Dawari George as Chairman, Rivers State Primary Health Care Management Board.
All chairmen were confirmed alongside their respective board members. However, Victoria Samuel, a nominee representing the Ministry of Local Government Affairs on the Primary Health Board, was stood down for failing to appear during the screening.
In the same session, the Senate passed the Rivers State 2025 Budget of ₦1.48 trillion, which had earlier been defended before the Bamidele-led committee by the state’s sole administrator.
Senators Ningi, Ndume, and Moro requested that their dissent be formally recorded, with one senator remarking, “We may have lost the vote, but history will remember this as the day Rivers people were denied their right to choose.”
Some lawmakers privately expressed concern that while the nominations may have cleared legal hurdles, the political fallout could be far-reaching, with murmurs of “constitutional colonialism” and fears of renewed unrest in Rivers.
