The status of Bonny Island as a global business hub needs to be restored with a view to attracting multilayered value chains in the Energy, Tourism, Manufacturing, and other areas of investments to the Niger Delta region, Tonye Cole has said.

Cole, who is the Rivers State governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said this during a courtesy visit to the Bonny Chiefs Council on Monday, February 20, 2023 at the King Perekule Palace, Bonny.

He was received on behalf of the Amanyanabo and Natural Ruler of Grand Bonny Kingdom, His Majesty, King Dr Edward Asimini William Dappa Pepple, CON, JP, GSSRS, Perekule XI, by the Vice Chairman of the Bonny Chiefs Council (BCC), Se-Alabo Hanniel Jack-Wilson Pepple, Minafigha VIII, Ojuigbe XIII, who is also the Chief and Head of Jack-Wilson Pepple Major House of Bonny Kingdom.

“The name Bonny has been synonymous for many years with the same breath that we say Houston, Antwerp, Amsterdam or we say Rotterdam, in the same breath, Bonny; in the same breath.”

“In every seminar that I’ve been to anywhere, when they are talking about Nigeria, they are talking about this industry, Bonny is mentioned in the same breath as all of those places. But I think that’s where the similarities end. And it shouldn’t be.”

“For many years I’ve agitated about it because when we talk about the world map, and we talk about the center of some of these activities, the Nigeria LNG, the Bonny Crude that’s one of the best that we have produced in Nigeria, that has done so much for the Nigerian economy. The people and the landscape and the map that Bonny should represent is a far cry of what it should be.”

For many of us who have been in that industry and travelled for a very, very long time and have crisscrossed the world, whether at the World Economic Forum, United Nations, whether in Houston at the OTC.”

“Many people have never been to Bonny but the picture they have in their head of what Bonny should be is what they see in Houston and what they see in Rotterdam, and they see at The Hague, or wherever most of the companies that have benefitted from Bonny should be.”

“We know it’s not true and so when we then want to have seminars or we want to invite people to come to where the center or one of the centers of our industry is, that’s when we realized that we still have a bit of shame in us, that we’re not where we should be and at such times, the burden of leadership then falls on us to say that how much longer are we going to let it be?”

“As we were coming here, I saw the two hovercrafts of Bonny NLNG heading out with gunboats escorting them; you can’t bring people as tourists coming to see this great Kingdom of Bonny and the only way they can get here is with gunboats, we’ll never develop that way.”

“So, there are things that we must do and there are things that we must work together to change. We’re grateful that in the near future the road would be completed. It’s nearly done; it’s part of the development that we should been here for many years ago. But it’s still just one small step away from what we ought to do.

He regretted that the entrenched world view about Bonny Island among the global business community was a far cry from the reality on ground, promising that when elected into office as Governor, he would engage the leadership of Bonny Kingdom in charting a long term and sustainable development template for his administration to implement.

The multibillionaire business mogul turned politician also asserted that traditional institutions were strategic to national cohesion and social engineering and as such are deserving of respect and honour.

He took exception to the denigration of traditional stools in the State by politicians, noting that such disrespect to ancient institutions that predate even Nigeria’s nationhood was uncalled for, stressing that his administration when in place would confer deserving veneration to traditional rulers in the State and partner with them to drive social good across the State. 

The Rivers APC gubernatorial hopeful traced his family ties to Bonny, disclosing that his first cousins were from the Banigo Major House of Grand Bonny Kingdom, elucidating that the riverine axis of the State and the Niger Delta as a whole parades an array of egalitarian families and communities with rich historical heritage.

“I also have in-laws in Bonny, the Banigos, Owen Apiribo Banigo of the Banigo Major House in Bonny, they’re my direct in-laws, my first cousins. Aunty Ella, who’s late, was married to my uncle and so my first cousins are also from Bonny. Ferdinand Banigo is an in-law.”

“We grew up with great names knowing Bonny, the Jumbos, the Harts, Pepples, the Dublin Greens, the Tolofaris, all the great names that I mentioned here.”

“It is our way in the riverine communities that we have great houses that have held tradition for a very long time. They are very proud, they are war canoe houses, they’ve built war canoe houses, they’ve traded, they’ve interacted, communicated and excelled in many ways for many years.”

He thanked the Bonny Kingdom Monarch and his Council of Chiefs for receiving him and his entourage comprising party stalwarts and faithful.

“Bonny is warm in many ways, to the Council of Chiefs that are here to the entire segments of Bonny, the elders, the men, the women, the youths; I want to say thank you very much for welcoming us into this kingdom today.”

Responding, representative of the Bonny Kingdom Monarch, Se-Alabo Hanniel Jack-Wilson Pepple, Minafigha VIII, Ojuigbe XIII, welcomed the APC Governorship candidate and his entourage, pointing out that Bonny Kingdom does not discriminate, stressing that corporate posture of the kingdom has always been that of inclusion and equal opportunity.

“You have observed that all the strata of this kingdom is adequately represented here. The Chiefs Council, the titled citizens, Wari-Opuseniapu and Wariseniapu, the men’s forum, the women forum, the youth forum; so, you have everyone of us here.”

“That is to say that as a kingdom, we do not discriminate or segregate. We don’t do that here. Every Rivers man is our brother and our sister and in your midst we also have our children here.”

“So, as fathers, all are our children and all of them are treated equally, recognized equally, respected equally. So, I want to welcome you, thanking God Almighty for granting you journey mercies to be here.”