THANKS TO AITEO FOR TIMELY INTERVENTION OPU NEMBE COUNCIL OF CHIEFS BY VICTOR EVANS

AITEO Boss Benedict Peters  

 The Opu Nembe Bassambiri Chiefs Council has expressed gratitude to the management of the international oil mogul, the ATTEO GROUP for extending her warm hand of fellowship to the community in her time of need.

Speaking to Golden Pen News Online Global Information Managers And News Breakers, in Opu Nembe, the Secretary to the Light Committee Chief Promise Ebinimi Nyoun-Inetimi described the ALTEO Group as a responsible company that understands the problems and fixes the needs of her host communities.

This is coming at the heels of supply of a brand new, electricity power generating plant, Saturday 2^nd February 2019 by the management of AITEO to the people of Opu Nembe Bassambiri kingdom.

It would be recalled that the community had suffered unfavorable conditions due to malfunctions of the two worn out power generators that illuminated the community before their total breakdown.

Chief Promise Nyoum Inetimi
 Secretary Light Committee

With this move, Chief Inetimi expressed the hope that the AITEO Group will not shy away from implementing the Memorandum Of Understanding (M.O.U) between Opu Nembe Bassambiri and the company, emphasizing that someday the dreams of Opu Nembe having a gas plant or being connected to a gas plant by AITEO will become a reality.

He used the medium to thank the Oil and Gas Committee of the Council led by Senior Chief B.J Kantee-Isere through whose effective co-ordination the bridges of unity and partnership is being built between the community and the company, Chief Inetimi emphasized.

The Opu Nembe Bassambiri Community had watched with interest the rising profile of the AITEO Group in service delivery and community relations as it’s  Founder/Leader  Benedict Peters won the prestigious African Icon of the year Award of Foreign Investment Network (FIN). An Award he received at the Nigeria International Petroleum Summit in Abuja.

Describing the Award as well deserved the Opu Nembe Bassambiri Chiefs who lauded the  “…vision of AITEO for: Mining, Agriculture, Infrastructure development,Electricity generation and distribution, focused on servicing the needs of communities across the continent…” assured of partnership with the company..

CHIEF ISERE DENIES ALLEGATION OF TAKING ANOTHER CHIEFTAINCY TITLE CALLS IT A LIE

Senior Chief B.J Kantee Isere

As rumor peddlers went to town with a fake news that the 4th most Senior Chief in the Opu Nembe-Bassambiri Council of Chiefs, Chief B.J.Kantee-Isere had concluded plans to dump his title to take another title in a neighboring community, and to verify the authenticity of the damaging rumor, Golden Pen Newspaper took a bold step, met with Chief Isere for an interview.Excerpts:

   Evans Tubonah is my name, I came to have one on one interview with you, but before we start, would you tell the readers your name?

Ans: My name is Okosi Alablo B.J.Kantee Isere of the Opu Nembe Bassambiri Chiefs council.

Question: There is a story making the rounds that you who have been a Chief, Chief Isere precisely, in the Opu Nembe Council of Chiefs,  had concluded plans to drop that title and to take another at the opposite side, Ogbolomabiri, Nembe City and that you have already built a house there and will soon pack over after the purported Chieftaincy title and ceremonies are done, what would you  say about that?

Ans: I have been a Chief for almost thirty years (30yrs) Now currently I am like the number four (NO 4) in the line of most senior Chiefs in the Opu Nembe Bassambiri Council of Chiefs and Kingdom.

Currently two of my senior Chiefs Epemu and  Aladede are very old, they hardly attend meetings, and whenever Chief L B Kanlango Kariyai is also absent in a meeting or any gathering of the Chiefs, I  become the most senior Chief in the Opu Nembe Bassambiri Council of Chiefs which has one hundred and fifty members.

     Yes! I heard the rumors myself.  Everybody has right to peddle any rumor and there is an adage in Nembe “Okumo erefabo-tingha” ( the drum does not call a person who has no name), which means that people don’t talk about someone that is not popular.  I think I have contributed so much to the development of my kingdom the Opu Nembe Bassambiri Kingdom in particular and the Nembe Ethnic Nationality in general.  The rumor mongers only used my name to peddle their rumors to pass their time, and if that make them happy its O.K, but the truth is that I am not moving from Chief Isere to any other title.

I am not just a Chief I am the King of “Isere-Ama” (Isere’s Town), and I am a Chief in the Opu-Nembe Bassambiri Chiefs Council and Kingdom from the Oluasiri axis of the Kingdom. All of us are aware that Oluasiri is where we have the Gas plant, where we have the big Petroleum/Gas resources, how and why Should I leave all these privileges and opportunities and  go to another community or kingdom to take a Chieftaincy title there?

Even though I am maternally related to Ogbolomabiri, from the Amain House in Nembe City, Ogbolomabiri, naturally I am entitled to any Chieftaincy title there, but for someone that had served for thirty years (30 YRS) as a Chief and not just a Chief but  someone that is popular, and  very responsible. Why will I leave my father’s name Chief Isere, if I do so, am I going up or down? So it’s not true, it’s not true at all, and it can never be true!

Ques : Can you digress a little bit on that , because some have said that you have already built a house to relocate,  could you please digress?

Ans: Yes! I am building a house at Ogbolomabiri, because a part of my mother is from Ogbolomabiri the Atubu family, and we are like the aborigines of Nembe kingdom, being descendants of the Obolo group, and Obolo  are the first sets of descendants before all the other big names we are hearing. The Obolo were the original Nembe people and I am a member of that family.

And if for any reason, my family members have a land for me, I think l should have the right to build a house there for my people. My people are not slaves, and nobody has the right to say I shouldn’t build a house for us it is our entitlement some of my people use Ogbolomabiri more than Bassambiri and if God has blessed me I should be free to build a house wherever, especially in my place, that’s why am building that house, and not at all for any Chieftaincy title.

In Nembe today, you hardly find family lands, lands are allocated to people in the sand filled areas, but this land was given to me by the people in my family. And the land is inside the town, it is not in the sand filled area; so I should be free to build house especially for a land given to me by my family.

Question: You said, you have been a Chief for thirty years now, that is quite a journey, as an elderly Chief can you tell the public about Nembe Ethnic Nationality? What are the cities and Kingdoms that make the Nembe Ethnic Nation?

Ans: The Nembe Ethnic Nationality is made up of the following Kingdoms:

We have the Opu Nembe Bassambiri Kingdom, we have the Nembe City Kingdom, we have the Twon-Brass Kingdom, we have the Okpoama Kingdom and we have the Odioma Kingdom. All these Kingdoms make up the Nembe Ethnic Nationality.

Ques: Now, to those born into more than one of these Kingdoms, what are the challenges in terms of relations.

Ans: Naturally Nembe Tradition is matrilineal, most of the people take their Chieftaincy titles from their mothers families, some take titles from their fathers families. I was one that took my title from my father’s family.  I took the title that bears my father’s name, most Chiefs bear names that are different from their father’s names.

But my name, I mean, the title I bear is on my certificates and on my account books. We were many entitled to the stool and I was the youngest. I became Chief when I was twenty two years (22 years) a Chief from my father’s side, bearing my father’s name and I cannot change my name, my prestigious Chieftaincy title, Isere to any other name or title..

Ques: To someone who becomes a chief or king in any part of the Nembe Kingdoms, a descendant of more than a kingdom, is he forbidden from embarking on any project outside the kingdom in which he is a Chief or King?

Ans: There is no law restricting anyone from building a house anywhere. if you are a Chief in either your father’s side or mother’s side, you also have right to relate with the other side.

Sometimes to even preside over meetings when the substantive Chief is not there, which is your right because if you were chosen Chief in your mother’s side, you would be  expected to do same. And if you have the resources to build houses everywhere, the places you came from you are free, there is no restriction on where you will build a house

Ques: Are you saying there is nothing wrong with that?

Yes! There is nothing wrong and I am not the first Chief that had built a house to honour his mother, while he is a Chief at his father’s side. People have been building. I am not the first and cannot be the last.
Ques: As a senior Chief, in-fact being the 4^th most senior Chief in the 150 members Chiefs council of the Opu Nembe Bassambiri Kingdom, Chief Isere sir, can you give the names of some of the most senior  Chiefs you met at your induction?

Ans: I met grandfathers as Chiefs, all those I met I was the youngest, and that time we were not more than 15 members of the Opu Nembe Bassambiri Council of Chiefs. And all they that were chiefs before me, the minimum years of seniority was over 25yrs above me .

We had Chief Peddie N Ibifa, Chief Otimi Oguara Kalabo, Chief Gibson Orunengimo, Chief Albert Doibo Ogbu, Chief Aaron Epemu who should be going to about 100 years of age now and Chief Febo. Out of these names some of those stools have changed occupants 3 or 4 times, because those I met had died, and others have come.

For example Kakango,  I think this is the third Kalango have seen, I have also seen the third Kalabo the one I met was Otimi Oguara Kalabo, who was supposed to be my grandfather, I met another Dokubo who became Kalabo, now we have Nimi Dambo as Chief Kalabo so we were just 15 but now 150 you can see  the difference, so  many young Chiefs were installed by their families, because of my outstanding performance as the youngest Chief then.

I worked very well with the senior Chiefs and everybody reasoned that if Chief Isere could work so committedly with the senior Chiefs let us appoint young people as Chiefs instead of appointing the elderly whose performance may be.

So, I was like a trail blazer that brought young people to sit on the stools of our old fathers.

Ques: Chief Isere you have spoken about Opu Nembe Bassambiri Council of Chiefs, what can you tell us about the Nembe Divisional Council of Chiefs?

Ans: initially when I became a Chief I also became a member of the Nembe  Divisional Council of Chiefs, that council comprises of Chiefs from Eguema,Liama,Belefiema, Twon-Brass Okpoama, Odioma, Ogbolomabiri  now Opu Nembe Agrisaba and Okoroba.

That was the Council of Nembe Nationality we are talking about, but one of the communities wanted to be lord over the rest of the communities, they wanted to claim the name Nembe to themselves, which they know was not right, they wanted to claim it, they had the tendency of seeing every person as an inferior person. People got annoyed and started leaving the union  Okpoama left the union, Opu Nembe Bassambiri left the union, Agrisaba, Okoroba and all the other axis left, we separated, while we supposed to be together in one council.

Ques: There is another union which you belong how do you call that?

Ans: when we separated, we now formed the Nembe-Ibe/Mini Council of Chiefs and we are doing well.

Ques: That we are very backward talking about development, what is the reason behind our backwardness?

Ans: The major factor I can say is, in-fighting, communal fighting we are supposed to be a united people because we are from the same root, but for greed or  whatever we started fighting each other so that unity to the common good of communities and the Nembe nation is no longer there. One of the assets we have as a people is that we own the lands that produce, what gives money to Nigeria, the crude oil and gas.

We have the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) at Oluasiri, also caked Soku Gas plant, which is in the territories of Opu Nembe-Bassambiri  Kingdom, we have the Nembe creek flow station Bassambiri flow station and so many flow stations.

But because the people are not coming together to ask for anything, development has not been coming as expected. Even the Federal and State Governments use the division between us to deprive us of infrastructural development.

The truth is that we are our own problem, as far as we cannot come together and ask for our development from the centre. The centre I mean are the state and the Federal Governments. They are not magicians and they cannot remember the people until you tell them what you need before you receive due attention.

As oil producing areas we are entitled to so much money coming to us even through the  13% derivation funds to give us the much desired infrastructural development; if we were speaking in one voice.

We know how much money comes into our state now, from our own production, but they don’t give us anything, and nobody can talk to the governors that have ruled the state and the nation, because we are not united.

Ques: the 2019 elections are around the corner, Nembe had been a flash point in past elections what message do you have for the people now ?

Ans: Actually Nembe generally  has been a flash point and Nembe Bassambiri  also had her portion of been a flash point, for so many years before now, but  recently when some of us became leaders of one of the political parties we tried to educate the people that  you don’t win elections by violence. You win elections by talking to the people, wooing the people, lobbying them, telling them what you will give to them what you can bring to them from wherever to the community.

Election is not by killing your brother election is not by harming your sister, election is to choose credible persons that represent you and bring development to the community over the years we have suffered so long, some people died during elections, but we are trying to educate our people. Before now, if a wife is a member of another party, as they come to the house they don’t talk to each other and that sometimes lead to separation…… but now we have changed the story we are now working as a team.

Members of different parties can now sit together, eat together and talk together on how to plan to win elections as elections are done, by lobbying. That’s what we are up to, we just recently signed a ‘Peace Accord ‘ and every party pledged that if any party be violent during the elections the community will sanction the offender the party or the candidate will be sanctioned we are believing that this year, we are going to have the most peaceful election, God willing!

Golden Pen: Thanks for granting the interview, we are going to try our best to inform the public, about what you have said.

Chief Isere: Am happy, welcoming you to interview me to correct the unfounded  rumors , because if rumors are not corrected, they  become realities, so I thank Golden Pen for giving me this opportunity to talk about these issues. From the dept  of my heart I wish  to thank you, Chief Tubonah and our Golden Pen Newspaper.

THE STORY OF STACEY: WORLD SMALLEST MOTHER {LATE] - By Evans Tubonah

Mr. & Mrs. Stacey Wils Herald
wedding day photo

The story of the great family of Mr. and Mrs Stacey Bil Herald had not been fully told, and may not be easy to be fully told in this generation and generations to come.
 It is an uncommon story about a man and a woman who took an uncommon decision full of challenges. Wil Herald was born without challenges, but Stacey came to the world with a great challenge which medical doctors described as:
"...a rare condition called osteogenisis imperfecta which stunted her growth, the genetic condition also caused brittle bones and under developed lungs."
But that was not and issue to Mr.Wil Herald the day he saw Stacey, he saw nothing than a wife material in her. They shared the privilege of working together in same office, which propelled the burning desire of Mr. Wil who proposed marrying Stacey.
Of-course, brilliant woman, Stacey did not take that proposal lightly looking at the quality of the man begging her hand in marriage, Stacey gave a nod without delay and the got married.
The marriage was not without disquiet, because it made news headlines across the global media, print, electronic and the new media.
The couple so loved themselves and there were no issues known to the public where they disagreed.
They were all of one mind, even as she insisted that she was going to be a mother of children against medical advice that it was risky for her to carry a baby in her womb and to give birth to children
judging her by the above stated condition.

Stacey and her child

Mr. and Mrs. Stacey and Wil Herald agreed that they must make a family, and their faith paid off as their first child, daughter, called Kateri came through them into the world in 2007.
Another disquiet across the world, as the Stacey Wil Herald family entered the Guinness World Records book with Stacey becoming the "World Smallest Mother".
With her first daughter, Stacey who strongly believed that she was going to bear fruit miraculously, because she also was a miracle  took in, against medical advice and had her first daughter, which became a practical proof of the miracle of God as she and her husband anticipated in faith.
That was not the end of the story, Stacey was not bent on being just a mother of one child, neither was her husband, to them, a single child cannot make a family they needed more children. But that was not what the doctors advised against earlier, and they couldn't go back on their word. To them it was just a miracle, or it just happened by chance, so she shouldn't dare again, that the couple could not accept and the went ahead and had other children....... 

BAYELSA EAST: INIRUO WILLS COMES IN AS GAME CHANGER?

Hon. [Barr.] Iniruo Owazi Wills

Former Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Bayelsa State, Hon. Iniruo Owazi Wills of the Labour Party had joined the Bayelsa East Senatorial race 2019 offering himself as a  credible candidate.

Mr. Owazi Wills a Lawyer by Profession, an Environmentalist, a Human and Peoples Rights

Activist, Patriot of Ijaw Nation, a true lover of his Senatorial District and Communities, a Visionary and ideological leader. He is indeed a big fish that had offered himself to serve his people.

The humble and development oriented Iniruo Owazi Wills' joining the race has brought hope to the electorate who are bent on choosing a credible parliamentarian at the upper House who would not have his personal interest override the interest of the Constituency he represents, but to liaise with the grassroots for a well co-ordinated  representation. His coming into the race is therefore being looked at by observers as changing the game.  The question on the lips of the masses,  IS INIRUO OWAZI WILLS THE GAME CHANGER?

Such a question is not out of place, because as soon as he entered the political field of play, he electrified the Senatorial District with new ideas, new visions for the masses to see that with him getting to the promised land of 'milk and honey' through the ballot box is just a stone throw.

Being a man of many colors, Iniruo Owazi Wills cannot be doubted or controverted because whatever he said is just the truth and nothing but the truth. He has vast experience at different fields. Due to his background as Environmentalist, he had been the eye of the Bayelsa East Senatorial District where he argued for the rights of the oil producing areas on environmental security, youth employment and overall development, in his capacity as a Special Adviser to the Governor of Bayelsa State on Environmental  matters, and as Hon. Commissioner of Environment all in the Restoration administration of Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson.

Besides, he spent years working with the Niger Delta Development Commission as Personal Assistant to the Managing Director Finance and Administration. 

As soon as he stepped into the race, he galvanized the Senatorial District with his vision, by putting on paper his Manifesto to clinch the 2019 electoral mandate pointing out why others elected to the Senate, who did their best, did not see what he is seeing, and what he would do if elected to the hallowed chambers of the Senate to represent them.

Barrister Iniruo Wills is like standing on the shoulders of his late father, Pa Owazi Wills, a philanthropist, who met the needs of many without asking where they came from, with his resources.

As son of Owazi Wills, Iniruo is like his father always willing to render service for the interest of humanity and the society. 

He had sold his ideas through the nooks and crannies of the Senatorial District and is emerging as the game changer to clinch the mandate to the coveted seat in the forth coming 16th February 2019 Senatorial Election in Bayelsa East. 

   

SYLVESTA MANGI

                    SHORT BIOGRAPHY OF LATE PA SYLVESTER BEREDUGO MANGI-PEGI
ANYTHING THAT HAS A BEGINNING MUST HAVE AN END;
SO, PA SYLVESTER BEREDUGO MANGI -PEGI COMMENCED
HIS LIFE JOURNEY WITH THE 20TH CENTURY AND HAS
ENDED IT ;UP ALMOST AT THE CLOSE OF THE CENTURY!
Born on s
Sunday, 39th January, 29th January 1900 by 8.00 p.m PA SYLVESTERR BEREDUGO MANGI-PEGI  was the first son among  the many children of late Chief Newstar Mangi Pegi.
His faathe late Chief Newstar Mangi Pegi was the son of the late Chief Dogu of Karitongha house in Ogbolomabiri Nembe and grandson to late Ombo of Dede grooup of houses at Sikakapolo, Bassanbiri Nembe.
\His mother late madam Caroline Erighayunyefa [Iye] of Aaburuyai John family in John polo Ogbolomabiri Nembe was the daughter of  late Alfred Ingodugha of Karitongha house Ogbolomabiri- Nembe.
Late Pa S.B Mangi Pegi had a primary education at St. Luke's  school Nembe from 1917 to 1922 and in the then Immaculate Heart Secondary Commercial School Port Harcourt in 1941.
TEACHING:
After a brief sawying of planks [one of the pioneer lumbermen] in Nembe at Oluasiri Nembe he took to teaching from 1925 to 1938. By this profession [teaching] he did not only inspire most of our elites today into the corridor of education but also was a pioneer teacher and in the establishment of schools and churches in some towns and villages among which were:- Bassambiri Nembe, Odioma, Igilagbene in Seibiri now Opuama etc. In 1938 he decided to withdraw from teaching profession much against the wishes and pleas from his dear friends and well-wishers.
MILITARY CAREER:
Pa S. B. Mangi Pegi had a brief military career during the second world war he enrolled in the then army on 12th february 1942 as a private and was discharged from army with the rank of lance coporal on the 14th january 1947. his arrival at home on 2nd febuary 1947 afteer his discharge from the army coincided with the death of his father as if it were a scheduled event pa sb mangi pegi arrilved home just in time to see his father as he was lying in state just before his burial later that day.
life at home
After his discharge from the army pa sb mangi pegi settled at home ot was at this stage that he brought to public focus his pioneering and innovaative spirit in all his under takings he was the first to introduce mechanical means of sharpening domestic cutting tools such as machetes axes knives etc in nembe he went into the food trade later and also made his mark there he was engaged in buying and selling of fufu okpungoro which was a staple food for the nembe people he brought innovation not onlly on the measurement of fufu by duplicating in volume to the  okpurubia the standard measurment in wooden box but also designed a means of preserving the food for longer period and incoporating it  to  its storage facilities these innovations enabled him to make this essential food item available to his customers virtuallly all the time and reduce long queus  especiallyn during peak sale periods by attending to many customers at a time
pa sb mangi pegis  next venture was in the transport sector the only means of transport was by dug-out canoes and it took from seven (7) to ten (10) days to move from nembe to portharcourt by hand pulling the few mechanically driven vessels lwere for district officers and UAC top officials and they were imported and definitely beyond means of the average nigerian pa sb mangi pegi concieved the idea of using small marine engines in dug out canoe for transportation

INIRUO WILLS MOVES TO CLINCH EAST SENATORIAL SEAT OF BAYELSA

The political terrain is fully set now across the country as the Nigeria's electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC] had fixed the 16th of January 2019 to kick-start the general election with the presidential polls and of the National Assembly.