Name National Landmark After Harold Dappa Biriye – Traditional Ruler Urges Federal Government

A prominent traditional leader in Bonny Kingdom has called on the Federal Government to properly immortalise the late statesman, Harold Jenewari Dappa Biriye by naming a national landmark or asset after him, describing current efforts to honour him as inadequate for a man of his stature.

Wari-Alabo Sodienye Jumbo, Chairman of the Jumbo Major Chieftaincy House of Bonny Kingdom made this call on Saturday, July 5, 2025, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

He was reacting to statement credited to the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr Samuel Ogbuku of plans to name the Commission’s headquarters after the late pan-Nigerian statesman. 

Wari-Alabo Jumbo, who retired as a Director in the Rivers State Government, expressed appreciation to the NDDC Managing Director and his management team for ongoing efforts to honour the late icon but insisted more needs to be done.

“I like to thank the MD of NDDC for trying to immortalise Chief Harold Dappa Biriye, but Dappa Biriye is a national figure and should be immortalised nationally.”

“They should name the Port Harcourt International Airport after him, just like his contemporaries: Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo, Aminu Kano, Michael Okpara, Akanu Ibiam, and even recently, Moshood Abiola.”

According to Wari-Alabo Jumbo, naming a single building or a road after Dappa Biriye within Rivers State does not reflect the magnitude of his contributions to Nigeria’s political history and the Niger Delta struggle.

“They should stop reducing him by naming a building in Port Harcourt or a road in Bonny after him,” he insisted.

“This man was instrumental in shaping the political consciousness of the Niger Delta. His legacy deserves a national monument.”

Wari-Alabo Jumbo also criticised what he described as a lack of unity and vision among Bonny indigenes in preserving and projecting Dappa Biriye’s legacy.

“Our Bonny people are not helping to promote and project him because of parochial sentiments,” he stated.

“Ironically, it is other Ijaw nationalities, especially from Bayelsa, who are at the forefront of fighting this cause.”

He called for a shift from local politics to national vision, urging Bonny people to acknowledge and celebrate their heroes without sentiment.

“Let’s acknowledge our heroes past and forget petty sentiments, so Bonny can play at the national level,” he said.

“We owe it to our children to elevate the legacy of Harold Dappa Biriye, not shrink it.”

Chief Harold Jenewari Dappa Biriye, often referred to as the “father of minority rights in Nigeria,” played a pivotal role in the political advocacy that led to the creation of states in the Niger Delta and was a founding voice for the rights of the region’s ethnic minorities. His national significance remains undeniable in Nigerian political history.