{"id":22855,"date":"2025-03-19T04:49:15","date_gmt":"2025-03-19T04:49:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/?p=22855"},"modified":"2025-03-19T04:56:59","modified_gmt":"2025-03-19T04:56:59","slug":"meet-rivers-administrator-and-former-naval-chief-ibas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/?p=22855","title":{"rendered":"Meet Rivers Administrator and Former Naval Chief, Ibas"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">By <a href=\"https:\/\/punchng.com\/author\/asobowalepunchng-com\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Adetutu Sobowale<\/a>\/ <b>Punch<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">President Bola Tinubu has named Admiral Ibokette Ibas, an administrator for Rivers State.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_22859\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-22859\" style=\"width: 235px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-22859\" src=\"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e06a2d89-4b24-4be4-8af6-85639e8802c9-235x300.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"235\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e06a2d89-4b24-4be4-8af6-85639e8802c9-235x300.jpeg 235w, https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e06a2d89-4b24-4be4-8af6-85639e8802c9-803x1024.jpeg 803w, https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e06a2d89-4b24-4be4-8af6-85639e8802c9-768x980.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e06a2d89-4b24-4be4-8af6-85639e8802c9-750x957.jpeg 750w, https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e06a2d89-4b24-4be4-8af6-85639e8802c9.jpeg 957w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 235px) 100vw, 235px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-22859\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">\u2022Admiral Ibokette Ibas.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">Ibas was appointed after Tinubu announced the suspension of the Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara and his deputy, Mrs Ngozi Odu for six months.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">Prior to his appointment, he was the 22nd Chief of the Naval Staff, a position he held until 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">Below are things to know about the new administrator:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas (CFR, psc+ GSS AM ndc MSc) was born on September 27, 1960, in Nko, Cross River State, Nigeria.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">He enlisted in the Nigerian Defence Academy as part of the 26 Regular Course on June 20, 1979, and was commissioned as a sub-lieutenant on January 1, 1983.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">Ibas began his primary education at Nko Primary School and later completed it at Big Qua Primary School, Calabar, in 1971.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">He proceeded to Hope Waddell Training Institute, Calabar, from 1972 to 1976, before attending the School of Basic Studies, Ogoja, between 1977 and 1979.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">He furthered his education at the Nigerian Defence Academy and later obtained a master\u2019s degree in Defence and Strategic Studies from Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">He completed the Sub-Lieutenant Technical Course at INS Venduruthy, India, between 1983 and 1984, and underwent Primary Pilot Training at the 301 Primary Flying Training School, Nigerian Air Force Base, Kaduna, between 1986 and 1987.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">In 1990, he attended the Junior Staff Course at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji, and later participated in the Amphibious Warfare Course at the United States Marine Corps University, Quantico, Virginia, in 1992.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">He also specialised in Underwater Warfare at NNS Quorra in 1994 and completed the Senior Staff Course at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji, in 1997. Additionally, he attended the National Defence Course at the National Defence College, Islamabad, Pakistan, in 2005.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">As a midshipman, he was posted on board NNS Ruwan Yaro, NNS Obuma, and NNS Aradu. After his commission, he served as a watchkeeping officer on NNS Ayam and NNS Ekpe.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">Between 1993 and 1996, he was the executive officer of NNS Siri, NNS Ekun, and NNS Ambe. He also served as the commanding officer of the Nigerian Navy Underwater Warfare School from 1997 to 1998 and later led the Forward Operating Base, Ibaka, from 1998 to 2000.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">His staff appointments included serving as a directing staff at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji, from 2000 to 2002, and later as deputy commandant in 2014.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">He was the naval provost marshal between 2003 and 2004 and served as the principal staff officer to the Chief of Naval Staff from 2004 to 2005.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">Between 2006 and 2009, he was the commander of the Naval Air Base, Ojo, and later the chief staff officer at the Naval Training Command, Lagos, from 2010 to 2011.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">He held several other key positions, including chief of administration at the Naval Headquarters (2011\u20132012), Navy Secretary (2012\u20132013), and flag officer commanding Western Naval Command (2013\u20132014). In 2014, he was appointed chief of logistics and subsequently became the GMD\/CEO of Nigerian Navy Holdings Limited.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p2\"><span class=\"s1\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">On July 13, 2015, Ibas was appointed as the 22nd Chief of the Naval Staff, a position he held until 2021. Following his retirement from the Navy, he remained an influential figure in national security and maritime affairs.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul class=\"ul1\">\n<li class=\"li2\"><span class=\"s1\">On March 18, 2025, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu appointed Vice Admiral Ibas as the Sole Administrator of Rivers State following the declaration of a state of emergency in the state. His role involves overseeing governance and restoring order in the state amid political instability.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President Bola Tinubu has named Admiral Ibokette Ibas, an administrator for Rivers State.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22856,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[10367,10366,10368,10369,755,808],"class_list":["post-22855","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-administrator","tag-admiral-ibokette-ibas","tag-former-naval-chief","tag-ibas","tag-rivers","tag-rivers-state"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22855"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=22855"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22855\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22861,"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22855\/revisions\/22861"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/22856"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=22855"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=22855"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblogonline.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=22855"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}