The Cedar of Nembe – 90 Years of Royalty, Engineering and Leadership
“The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.” – Psalm 92:12
There are men who live, and there are institutions who walk as men. Late Sir (Chief) Engr. Hans Suku-Ogbari, JP, Ogbari XII, was an institution.
Born on 3rd November, 1936 in Nembe City, present-day Nembe LGA, Bayelsa State, and called to glory on Wednesday, 15th April, 2026 in Port Harcourt, his 90-year journey was the story of a kingdom distilled into one life.
THE BLOOD OF KINGS
His genealogy is Nembe history itself.
Paternally, his line begins with Mingi the Great, the celebrated progenitor of Nembe City. Mingi begat Ogbari, whose mother Orukoro was a daughter of Fuoropa — the ancient maritime power of present-day Southern Ijaw. Ogbari begat Ogbariyai-Suku, who married Muna and begat Okolota. Okolota was a woman who held the lineage through a female line — a testament to resilience. Okolota begat Abili, who married Ovo, nephew of Gamdede. Their union produced three children: Elder Gogo (son), Ogbulu (son), and Itembo/Itemebo (daughter). Through Elder Gogo, the direct line continued — father of Suku-Ogbari and Late Madam Ebibo Gogo.
Maternally, he was equally royal — traceable from Late Robert Abrakasa-Igbeta, through Kulo, back to Mingi the Great. Double royalty, paternal and maternal, met in one man.
That is why his installation as Ogbari XII and Head Chief of the Ogbari, Basuo, Inengite, Mangite and Gboro Group of War Canoe Houses was not an appointment, it was a homecoming.
FROM ORPHAN TO ENGINEER
In 1941, at age 5, he lost his father. He and his sister were taken in and raised with fierce love by their paternal aunt, Madam Itemebo — the woman the bio calls the true embodiment of Yaiye Togu.
Destiny then brought his maternal uncles: Late Elder Claude Sunday Abrakasa, Late Elder Standfast I. Abrakasa, Late F. S. Abrakasa and Late Mrs. Sister Kemmer, sister of Late Dr. Israel Kemmer. They pooled resources to educate him.
- 1944: Enrolled at St. Luke’s School, Nembe as Hans Suku-Abrakasa. He was brilliant from day one.
- 1952: Completed Standard Six with outstanding results.
- 1957: Graduated from the elite Kalabari National College (KNC), Buguma — one of the foremost colleges in the old Eastern Region.
He did not wait. He served:
- 1958-1964: Primary School Teacher, shaping young minds.
- 1960-1964: Customs Officer, Nigeria Customs Service — discipline, service and work ethic at once.
Then the defining leap:
As captured on the official biography — He proceeded to the University of Lagos between 1964 and 1968 where he graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering. It was this rigorous training that earned him the coveted title Engr. and launched him into the oil industry.
His professional excellence was immediate:
- January 1970: Appointed Petroleum Engineer (Production).
- December 1970 – July 1980: Nigeria Port Harcourt Petroleum Refining Company (NPRC) as Refining Trainer / Refining Officer. The biography notes he “acquired at the university with remarkable diligence, quickly earning the confidence of his supervisors.”
- 1978: In a pioneering move, he established Kololo Guest House — the first guest house in Nembe City.
- 1980: Founded Tamama Electrical and Construction Company Limited and Kololo Engineering Company — becoming a builder of both structures and opportunities.
A Justice of the Peace (JP), his industry was Proverbs 22:29 in action: “Seest thou a man diligent in his business? He shall stand before kings.”
THE KINGMAKER IN THE STORM
When Nembe needed calm in chaos, they called him.
He served as Chairman, Nembe Divisional Chiefs Council 1992-1994 and was re-elected 1994-1996. In 1994-1996, he was elevated as Chairman, Nembe Chiefs Council — a tenure that coincided with the brutal Nembe-Kalabari conflict. While many fled, Ogbari XII stood firm — calm, resolute, fatherly — protecting the dignity of the stool and the people.
He remained Chairman of the Nembe City Cultural Committee and Land Committee until his passing — custodian of culture and land.
In modern politics, he also answered: Appointed Councillor, Brass Local Government Council, old Rivers State after the 1976 reforms, and in the historic return to democracy, he contested elective office in 1979 on the platform of Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), alongside Melford Obiene Okilo, who later became Governor of old Rivers State.
A LOVE STORY THAT SURVIVED WAR
His greatest partnership was not in the refinery or council hall, but at home.
He married Late Dame Freda Eneni Suku-Ogbari. Their story:
- 26th December, 1966: Traditional engagement in Nembe City when he was still Hans Suku-Abrakasa.
- Separation followed — he in Lagos, she teaching at Egbu Girls’ Secondary School, Egbu near Owerri.
- The Nigerian Civil War scattered families, but brought them back together in Lagos.
- Saturday, 28th December, 1968: Solemnized at All Saints’ Anglican Church, Yaba, Lagos. Nearly five decades of marriage followed — marked by a cherished tradition of thanksgiving anniversaries: Silver (25th), Pearl (30th) and Ruby (40th) celebrated in Nembe City, Port Harcourt and Yenagoa.
He was a loving but disciplined father who believed character, hard work and reverence for God were the true inheritance.
A PILLAR OF FAITH
A devoted member of the Samuel Harvest Men Group, he saw giving to God as privilege, not duty. He joyfully accepted to be Father of the Day at every Father’s Day celebration until his passing.
In 2018, the Christian Men Fellowship and the entire Cathedral Church of St. Luke, Nembe, honoured him with an Award of Honour — a seal on a life of faithful service.
He lived 2 Timothy 4:7: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
SUNSET
On Wednesday, 15th April, 2026, in Port Harcourt, the cedar fell. At 90 years of purposeful living, Ogbari XII answered the Master’s call.
He is survived by his children, grandchildren, in-laws, nephews, nieces, the entire Ogbari, Basuo, Inengite, Mangite and Gboro War Canoe Houses, his maternal Abrakasa family, and a kingdom that will never forget him.
Adieu, Sir (Chief) Engr. Hans Suku-Ogbari, JP, Ogbari XII.
His voice is silent, but his counsel echoes. His hands rest, but his works endure. His throne is vacant, but his legacy is established forever.
TIMELESS VERDICT: Ogbari XII did not just live long. He lived deep. He was the bridge between Mingi the Great and the petroleum age, between canoe house and council chamber, between tradition and engineering.
SOURCE ATTRIBUTION:
This biography is extracted and compiled from the Official Funeral Biography Booklet of Late Sir (Chief) Engr. Hans Suku-Ogbari, JP, Ogbari XII (1936-2026), as released by the Ogbari, Basuo, Inengite, Mangite & Gboro War Canoe Houses and the Suku-Ogbari family during his funeral rites in Nembe City, Bayelsa State, September 2026.
