Ex-NBA president cautions Rivers assembly against probing Ibas

Former President, Nigerian Bar Association, Chief Onueze Okocha, has cautioned the Rivers House of Assembly against probing ex-Sole Administrator, Retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas.

Okocha stated this while speaking with newsmen on Monday in Port Harcourt.

He urged them to focus on rebuilding the state through robust legislative commitments.

According to him, the house should channel its energy to accomplishing constitutional duties rather than probing.

Reports has it that Ibas served as the Sole Administrator of Rivers State from March to September 2025, following the suspension of Governor Siminalayi Fubara by President Bola.

There have been calls for an investigation into his administration since he vacated office.

But Okocha said that plans by the members to review as well as probe the Administrator’s spending during the six-month emergency rule were unnecessary.

He said that if the probe was carried out, it could be misunderstood as a witch-hunt, since he was only deployed to accomplish a task as directed by President Bola Tinubu.

“I think Ibas deserved some honour and respect; it will be unkind if our lawmakers begin to talk about probing him since they did not appoint him, nor was he reporting to them.

“As a concerned citizen of the state, my advice to the Lawmakers is that they should ignore the plan of probing Ibas and allow the state to run peacefully along democratic lines.

“There’s an urgent need for a harmonious relationship amongst the three arms of government, the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary if we must move forward,” he said.

ADVERTISEMENT

The former NBA boss, therefore, appealed to the lawmakers to preoccupy themselves with rebuilding harmonious relationships with the various arms of government to achieve democratic stability in the state.

NAN