With the recent State of Emergency as declared by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the emergence of IBOK-Ete Ibas as the new Rivers State Administrator, everyone is concerned to know who he is. IBOK-Ete Ibas a retired vice admiral, is stepping into a new role as Rivers State administrator, bringing with him decades of military experience.

Ibok-ete Ibas was the former chief of naval staff, Ibas is renowned for his leadership in maritime security and military operations.

This appointment followed the declaration of a State of Emergency in Rivers State on Tuesday, March 18 by President Bola Tinubu.

This declaration also came in with the president suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and all the lawmakers for a period of six months.

The president said: “In the meantime, I hereby nominate Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas (Rtd) as Administrator to take charge of the affairs of the state in the interest of the good people of Rivers State.

“For the avoidance of doubt, this declaration does not affect the judicivval arm of Rivers State, which shall continue to function in accordance with their constitutional mandate.”

Here are a few things to know about the new administrator, Ibok-ete Ibas:

Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, born on September 27, 1960, served as Nigeria’s 22nd chief of naval staff from 2015 to 2021. In this role, he reportedly led efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s maritime security, combat oil theft, and modernize the Navy’s operational capabilities.
He was born in Nko, Cross River State, he joined the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1979 and was commissioned as a sub-lieutenant in 1983. He steadily rose through the ranks, holding several high-profile command and administrative positions.
Ibas trained at several military institutions, including the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji, the Amphibious Warfare School at the United States Marine Corps University, and the National Defence College in Pakistan. He holds a master’s degree in Defence and Strategic Studies from Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad. He also attended several military courses at home and abroad.
Throughout his career, Ibas held several leadership roles, including flag officer commanding the Western Naval Command, chief of logistics at the Naval Headquarters, and GMD/CEO of Nigerian Navy Holdings Limited.
He was the commanding officer of the Nigerian Navy Underwater Warfare School from August 1997 to September 1998 and thereafter the commanding officer of the Forward Operating Base Ibaka from September 1998 to June 2000.
Ibas served as the naval provost marshal from April 2003 to June 2004 before becoming the principal staff officer to the Chief of Naval Staff from June 2004 to July 2005. He later held the position of command operations officer at the headquarters of the Western Naval Command in Lagos from June to December 2006. From December 2006 to January 2009, he was appointed commander of the Naval Air Base in Ojo.
In 2010, he was appointed chief staff officer at Headquarters, Naval Training Command, Lagos, a position he served till March 2011.
He was the flag officer commanding Western Naval Command from January 2013 to January 2014.
In October 2022, former President Muhammadu Buhari conferred on him the National Honour of Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR)