Eze Ohna Sergeant Chidi Awuse, a prominent traditional ruler in Rivers State, has voiced his disappointment with Governor Siminialayi Fubara for removing him as chairman of the Traditional Rulers’ Council while he was critically ill.
Amuse, who was appointed by former governor Nyesom Wike, was ousted on June 21, 2024, due to accusations of instability in his leadership. He was replaced by Eze Chike Worlu Wodo, the Paramount Ruler of Apara Kingdom.
Eze Awuse’s removal came amid tensions between Governor Fubara and former governor Nyesom Wike, now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), over the state’s leadership structure. During a visit from Wike and his political associates celebrating Awuse’s recovery from a serious illness, the monarch expressed frustration, revealing that he was in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) when his removal was announced. He spent ten hours in a coma and six days in the ICU.
He said, “I was sacked from my seat the day I was in ICU. I was in a coma for 10 hours. I told him only (Wike) because everybody rejected me.
“The government I was serving rejected me.
“I am learning how to stand up because I was in ICU for six weeks with gadgets all over my body fed through my nose. And you (Fubara) told people when I was in ICU that I was a man of questionable character.
“You said Sergeant Awuse, I am not steady. That is one quality I don’t deserve. Call me any other name but I am a steady human being.”
