Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa has described the death of Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, the first civilian governor of the state as a personal loss to him, the government and people of the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Alamieyeseigha died on Saturday evening at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, where he was receiving medical care.
Dickson, in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Iworiso-Markson, said Alamieyeseigha was a strong supporter of his administration.
He said in the statement that Alamieyeseigha’s demise was a very painful and monumental loss to the entire Ijaw nation, which he had always defended.
The Bayelsa governor also commiserated with the deceased’s wife, Margaret, his immediate family, and the entire people of the state, noting that the Ijaws had lost a “rare gem”.