Former BBC correspondent and international multimedia journalist Donu Kogbara has criticised the emergence of Celestine Chinda in the unfolding political realignment in Rivers State, arguing that the move raises questions about ethnic balance and political inclusiveness in the state.
Speaking during a discussion on Arise News on Friday May 22, 2026, Kogbara said Chinda, whom she described as “a really nice man,” should have rejected what she characterised as an offer backed by Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike.
According to her, Chinda’s emergence has intensified concerns over the continued dominance of one ethnic bloc in Rivers politics.
“Chinda comes from more or less the same local government area as Wike,” Kogbara said during the programme. “We have had four Ikwerre governors. Chinda is Ikwerre, in a state full of diverse groups. It is the height of insensitivity.”
Kogbara, who is from Ogoni in Rivers State, argued that several ethnic groups in the state have remained politically marginalised despite decades of democratic governance.
She lamented what she described as the prolonged exclusion of the Ogoni people from top political offices in the state, noting that Rivers had never produced an Ogoni governor, deputy governor, chief judge, or speaker of the state House of Assembly.
The journalist maintained that Chinda’s acceptance of the political arrangement was inappropriate given the broader debate about equity and power rotation in Rivers State.
Her comments come amid heightened political tension in Rivers State following Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s withdrawal from the APC governorship race ahead of the 2027 elections, a development that has triggered fresh debate over political control, zoning, and the influence of Wike in the state’s power structure.
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