By EgbemaVoice,
Meet Commodore Promise Dappa, a decorated naval officer who gave the Nigerian Navy 32 years of unwavering service, only to be denied promotion three times. Why? According to him, it all boils down to one thing; he refused to play ball with oil thieves.
Dappa, who once served as Maritime Guard Commander at NIMASA, claims his anti-oil theft crusade made powerful enemies, including then-Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas. And when Ibas took the helm in 2015, Dappa says his career was sunk—not for lack of merit, but because he refused to “cooperate” with the oily underbelly of the system.
“I had one of the best records among my contemporaries,” Dappa said. “But Ibas made sure I was denied every privilege, while his protégés; two of whom were later indicted by the EFCC, got promoted after looting NIMASA dry.”
The retired Commodore alleges that millions were forfeited by his successors, yet they still climbed the ranks under Ibas’ watch. Meanwhile, he was blacklisted for doing the right thing.
It didn’t end there.
Dappa also accuses Ibas of ethnic favoritism, claiming Rivers officers were systematically sidelined while choice postings and fast-track promotions were reserved for Cross River and Akwa Ibom officers; “Ibas’ boys,” as he calls them.
Fast forward to 2025, and Ibas is still making headlines—for all the wrong reasons.
Now serving as Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Ibas is under fire after the House of Reps flagged N30 billion for gunboats, N23 billion for “contingency reserves”, and N24 billion for CCTV in a Government House that already has working cameras.
Dappa says none of this surprises him.
"Ibas couldn’t buy proper gunboats when he was Chief of Naval Staff, and now he’s budgeting billions for the same boats as an administrator? Rivers State is just his new playground. Only God can save the treasury now.”
From the high seas of corruption to the corridors of political manipulation, Dappa’s story paints a picture of a man who stood for integrity and paid the price for it, while the system rewarded those who knew how to “settle.”
Funny how the same hands that turned a blind eye to oil theft are now signing off on ghost gunboats and invisible CCTV.
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