Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State has approved the appointment of Hon. Benibo Anabraba as the new Secretary to the State Government (SSG). This was confirmed in a statement released on Monday by Dr. Honour Sirawoo, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Communications.
Anabraba is set to be officially sworn in today, Monday, 13 October 2025, at 4:00 p.m. at the State Executive Council Chambers, Government House, Port Harcourt.
The statement reads, “His Excellency, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, GSSRS, Governor of Rivers State, has approved the appointment of Hon. Benibo Anabraba as Secretary to the Rivers State Government. The new SSG will be sworn in today, Monday, October 13, 2025, by 4:00 PM at the State Executive Council Chambers, Government House, Port Harcourt.”
The appointment follows Governor Fubara’s recent reinstatement after a period of political and legal upheaval. Earlier this year, on 18 March 2025, President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers State, suspending Fubara, his deputy, and members of the House of Assembly. The move came amid ongoing political tensions between Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike.
During the emergency, retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas was appointed Sole Administrator to restore political stability. Ibas suspended commissioners, special advisers, assistants, and dissolved boards and parastatals.
Since the lifting of the emergency rule in September 2025, the fate of Fubara’s appointees had been uncertain. The Rivers State House of Assembly, in its first sitting post-emergency, urged the governor to submit a fresh list of commissioner nominees alongside the 2025 budget for approval.
With his return, Governor Fubara is now moving swiftly to consolidate his administration, beginning with the appointment of Benibo Anabraba as Secretary to the State Government.
