Cletus Komena Emein was

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Niger State Niger State is a state in the North Central (Nigeria), North Central region of Nigeria, bordered to the east by Kaduna State and the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory, to the north by Kebbi State and Zamfara State, ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

from 9 Dec 1993 to 22 Aug 1996. He became a member of the Niger Delta Committee, tasked with solving the endemic violence in the oil-producing region, in September 2008.

Niger State governor

As governor of Niger State he was noted for going to work without a security guard. In 1994 he dethroned Etsu Muhammadu Attahiru of the

Agaie Emirate The Agaie Emirate was a state created by Malam Baba, a Fulani religious scholar/warrior who conquered the Nupe people of the area in 1822. Its seat was the present town of Agaie in Niger State, Nigeria, and was subject to the Sokoto Caliphate. Ba ...

due to allegations that he had murdered Alhaji Ibrahim Tsadu, Chairman of the Agaie Local Government Area. Attahiru was later cleared of the allegation. He retired with the rank of Brigadier-General.

Subsequent career

Cletus Emein became chairman of Reach Engineering & Diving Services, a company involved in maintenance of offshore oil rigs. In October 2004, Cletus Emein and other Ijaw leaders asked a visiting delegation from the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

government to advise the

Shell Petroleum Development Company Shell Nigeria is the common name for Shell plc's Nigerian operations carried out through four subsidiaries—primarily Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC). Royal Dutch Shell's joint ventures account for more than 21% of ...

to avoid trouble in the region by ceasing to take undue advantage of the people of the

Niger Delta The Niger Delta is the delta of the Niger River sitting directly on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean in Nigeria. It is located within nine coastal southern Nigerian states, which include: all six states from the South South geopolitic ...

. In April 2005 Cletus Emein called on the Federal Government to ensure that oil companies operating in the Niger Delta comply with their legal obligations to the communities in the region, imposing severe penalties for non-compliance. Speaking about a Niger Delta stakeholders conference called by President

Olusegun Obasanjo Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo (; ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian former army general, politician and statesman who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its president from 1999 to 200 ...

in April 2006, General Cletus Emein said he was not against dialogue. However, the Federal Government must already know that the people of the Niger-Delta, particularly the

Ijaw Ijaw may refer to: *Ijaw people The Ijaw people, also known as the Izon people, are an ethnic group found in the Niger Delta region in Nigeria, with primary Population, population clusters in Bayelsa State, Bayelsa, Delta State, Delta, and River ...

, were being grossly marginalized. In May 2008, speaking as a member and advisor on Peace and Security of the

Izon Izon may refer to: People * Charles Izon (1872–1897), English football player * David Izon, also known as David Izonritei, heavyweight silver medallist * Dennis Izon (1907–1967), English football player * Noel Izon, Filipino filmmaker Places * ...

Council of Elders in

Delta State Delta is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South (Nigeria), South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named after the Niger Delta—a large part of which is in the state—the state was formed from the former Bendel State, on 27 August 1 ...

, Cletus Emein called for restraint by both the militants and the Joint Military Task Force to avoid causing further harm to Ijaw communities in the area. He called on the Federal Government to set up a panel to determine the cause of the recent crisis and recommend how to avoid a repeat. In September 2008

Governor

Emmanuel Uduaghan Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan (born 22 October 1954) is a retired Nigerian politician and doctor who served as Governor of Delta State from 2007 to 2015. He assumed office via an inconclusive election on 29 May 2007 and was a member of the Peop ...

nominated General Cletus Emein to the Niger Delta committee as a representative of the Ijaw ethnic group.

References

1948 births Living people Governors of Niger State People from Niger State {{NigerNG-politician-stub