No more division — Magnus Abe thanks Tinubu for uniting Ogoni people
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Former governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Rivers State, Magnus Abe, has expressed gratitude to President Bola Tinubu for honouring the late Ogoni Four, describing the move as a unifying moment for the people of the state.
Abe made the remarks on Wednesday during an interview on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, while reacting to the conferment of national honours on the late Ogoni leaders.
“What happened today is to finally recognise these four outstanding Ogoni leaders — late Chief Edward Kobani, Chief Samuel Orage, Chief Theophilus Orage, and Mr. Albert Badey, the former Secretary to the Government of Rivers State. It was a defining moment in that struggle, and we are all very grateful to President Tinubu for taking that historic step to bring our people together in order to finally put the demons of the past behind us. We’re very grateful,” Abe said.
Earlier on Wednesday, President Tinubu conferred posthumous national honours of the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) on the four leaders during a ceremony at the State House, Abuja.
The President, while receiving the report of the Ogoni Consultations Committee, urged Ogoniland to embrace reconciliation and unity after decades of division.
The recognition comes 16 months after Tinubu pledged, in May 2024, to “pursue diligently and honourably” the Ogoni cleanup project and expand empowerment programmes to benefit more indigenes of the oil-rich community.
Abe stressed that Tinubu’s gesture had gone beyond symbolism, noting that it had healed wounds and restored collective pride among the Ogoni people.
““We are all together now. We don’t want to have that division anymore. With the steps the President has taken, we believe the ground is finally set for the takeoff of a new Ogoni,” the former senator said.
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