Rivers Women Stage Walkout at Empowerment Event, Reject Sole Administrator’s Wife.
On May 2, 2025, women in Rivers State staged a dramatic walkout at an empowerment program held at the EUI Event Centre in GRA, Port Harcourt.
The protest was triggered when Dr. Theresa Ibas, wife of the state’s Sole Administrator, attempted to address attendees.
The event, organized under the Renewed Hope Initiative of Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, was designed to empower 500 women across the state.
However, tensions escalated as the women expressed disapproval of Dr. Ibas representing the First Lady, insisting that Lady Valerie Fubara, wife of the suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, was the rightful First Lady of Rivers State.
One of the protesters, Mrs. Joy Tamuno, voiced the group’s frustration,
“We were informed that the President’s wife, Senator Remi Tinubu, was coming to our state, only to see the Sole Administrator’s wife addressing Rivers women. As true Rivers women, we will not identify with illegality, so we left the venue.”
While the women reiterated their appreciation for Senator Tinubu’s empowerment initiative, they maintained that they would have preferred to be addressed by Lady Valerie Siminalayi Fubara, whom they regard as the legitimate First Lady of the state.
