The Governor of Bayelsa State, Douye Diri, has expressed gratitude to a former Head of State, late General Sani Abacha, for the creation of the state 25 years ago.

Diri said the people of the state would remain grateful to Abacha for taking the decision in the face of other factors that could have hindered the state’s creation on October 1, 1996.

He spoke during a thanksgiving service on Nigeria’s 61st independence and 25th anniversary of Bayelsa at the King of Glory Chapel in Government House, Yenagoa, on Sunday.

The governor in a statement on Monday by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Daniel Alabrah, praised the Nigerian leader and declared that he remained a hero to the state and the Ijaw nation, despite being a despot.

He said, “Let me use this medium to thank one man. He may not be popular in Nigeria but to me and all of us Bayelsans, we see him as a great man, a hero. The man, who by the stroke of the pen, signed the creation of Bayelsa State. I am talking about the late General Sani Abacha.

“We acknowledge him as a state and people. By his singular assent, he created this state with just eight local government areas, which was less than the constitutional requirements.”

Speaking on Nigeria’s 61st independence anniversary, the governor called on the Federal Government to ensure justice and equity in the distribution of resources in the country..