Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has sworn in Chris Finebone, a former spokesperson of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the state, as commissioner.
Mr Finebone, who defected to the ruling party in the state – the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) – in August, was sworn in alongside 17 others as commissioner on Wednesday.
No portfolio was assigned to the new cabinet members, who have just seven months to stay in office, before the end of Mr Wike’s administration next year.
Mr Finebone, before his defection, was an ally of the former minister of transportation, Rotimi Ameachi.
Speaking at the swearing-in ceremony, Governor Wike urged the new commissioners to double up efforts to ensure that the administration completes what it started.
The spokesperson to the governor, Kelvin Ebiri, gave the names of the other commissioners as: Princewill Chike, Jacobson Nbina, Ndubuisi Okere, Inime Aguma, Charles Amadi, Tonye Briggs, Ben Daminabo and Austin Chioma.
Others are Uchechukwu Nwafor, Fred Kpakol, Emenike Oke, Prince Ohia, Kaniye Ebeku, Ezekiel Agri, Ukiel Oyaghiri , Damiete Miller and Emeka Onowu.
Governor Wike, while inaugurating the PDP campaign council in the state, had described the APC in the state as a “dead party”.
“As far as Rivers State is concerned, it’s dead. What would they come and campaign for?
“They would come and tell us we didn’t do well? How could we not do well? Their president has judged that we have done very well,” Mr Wike said, referring to an “Award of Excellence” for infrastructure delivery bestowed on him by President Muhammadu Buhari last week.
The APC in Rivers has had many setbacks to contend with, ranging from defections which hit the party in the state within the last four months, and litigations.
This media reported how a Federal High Court in the state nullified all the primaries conducted by the party in the state over illegal exclusion of some members.
The court judgment has put candidates of the party in the state in a limbo until the outcome of their appeal at the Court of Appeal.