President Bola Tinubu has removed Chukwuemeka Woke as Managing Director (MD) of the Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority (OORBDA).
Presidential spokesman Ajuri Ngelale made this announcement in a statement on Wednesday.
Woke was Chief of Staff to the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike as the governor of Rivers State.
Recall that President Tinubu had appointed him as head of the authority on May 9, 2024.
But Woke’s appointment was met with public outcry as some groups and individuals said it was against the principle of familiarity and regional representation.
According to Ngelale, Woke had been replaced with Dr. Adedeji Ashiru.
Ngelale said Tinubu had moved Woke to the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) as the Director-General/Chief Executive Officer.
The statement reads, “Engr. Woke, besides being an engineer, is an environmental specialist and politician. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical/Petrochemical Engineering, and had served under the Environmental, Safety, and Operations Departments of the then Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
“He was Chairman of Emohua Local Government Area of Rivers State and Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt, for many years.
“Dr. Ashiru holds a Doctorate degree in Engineering from the Common Wealth University, UK, and has led a consortium of blue-chip companies, in addition to earning many stripes in his professional endeavour.
“The President expects the new Chief Executive Officers to deploy their competencies to these critical agencies for sustainable gains and turnaround, while maintaining utmost transparency in their operations.”