Tai is a

Local Government Area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

(LGA) of

Rivers State Rivers State, also known as Rivers, is a state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed in 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include: Imo to the north, Abia and Akwa Ib ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. It covers an area of 159 km² and at the 2006 Census it had a population of 117,797. It is part of the Okrika/Oyigbo/Tai/Eleme constituency of the

Nigerian Senate The Senate is the upper chamber of Nigeria's bicameral legislature, the National Assembly of Nigeria. The National Assembly (popularly referred to as NASS) is the nation's highest legislature, whose power is to make laws, is summarized in chapt ...

, represented since April 2007 by

George Thompson Sekibo Senator George Thompson Sekibo CON is a Nigerian senator who represents the People's Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State. He became a member of the Nigerian Senate in 2007. Background George Thompson Sekibo was born on 1 April 1957 in Ogu ...

. In the April 2007 elections the Tai LGA recorded an implausible 99.6% turnout for the Governorship election.

Celestine Omehia Sir Celestine Ngozichim Omehia (born 15 September 1959) was the fourth Governor of Rivers State, Nigeria from 29 May 2007 to 25 October 2007. He is a member of the former ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP). He is married to Mrs. Anthonia Omeh ...

of the

Rivers State People's Democratic Party The Rivers State Peoples Democratic Party, also referred to as Rivers PDP, is the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party in Rivers State, Nigeria. It is currently chaired by businessman and Philanthropist Felix Obuah. Prominent public ...

was at first declared winner, but his election was later annulled and

Rotimi Amaechi Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi (born 27 May 1965) is a Nigerian politician, he served as the Federal Minister of Transportation of Nigeria from 2015 to 2022 under the cabinet of President Muhammadu Buhari. He resigned to contest for Nigeria's presidency ...

, also of the PDP, was declared governor. In February 2009, the Chairman of Tai Local Government Area was Barry Mpigi. Most of the people are

Ogoni The Ogonis are a people in the Rivers South East senatorial district of Rivers State, in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria. They number just over 2 million and live in a homeland which they also refer to as Ogoniland. They share common ...

, speaking the

Tee A tee is a stand used in sport to support and elevate a stationary ball prior to striking with a foot, club or bat. Tees are used extensively in golf, tee-ball, baseball, American football, and rugby. Etymology The word tee is derived from the ...

and Baan languages. Communities include Ban-Ogoi, Bara-Ale, Bara-Alue, Barayira, Borobara (a central community), Botem, Bunu, Deeyor Kira, Gbam, Gbene-Ue, Horo, Kebara Kira, Korokoro (the seat of the Tai monarch), Koroma, Kpite, Nonwa Tai (Kebara), Nonwa Uedume, Orkpo, Sime and Ueken. Other communities include Kporghor and Gio. Tai Local government area has two broad sections: the Tua Tua Kingdom and the Barasi Nonwa Kingdom, both under the overall Tai kingdom headed by the Gbene Mene Tai. The primary occupations are farming, and fishing to a lesser degree. In September 2009, Samuel Nnee was the paramount ruler of the Kpite Community in Tai LGA. There are many oil wells in the LGA, which is laced with pipelines, with most of the oil installations being operated by

Shell Nigeria Shell Nigeria is the common name for Shell plc's Nigerian operations carried out through four subsidiaries—primarily Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC). Royal Dutch Shell's joint ventures account for more than 21% of ...

. However, the local community has seen little benefit from oil extraction, and infrastructure is poor. In the 1990s, the

Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), is a social movement organization representing the indigenous Ogoni people of Rivers State, Nigeria. The Ogoni contend that Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), along with othe ...

began a struggle against the degradation of their lands, which at times erupted into violence. In June 2001 an oil pipeline that passes through the Baraale community ruptured and spilled crude oil into nearby forests, farmlands and houses. There were delays in repair, and in October 2001 the spilled oil caught fire, causing extensive environmental damage. The region suffers from violence, kidnapping and arson.

References

Local Government Areas in Rivers State 1996 establishments in Nigeria 1990s establishments in Rivers State {{RiversState-geo-stub