Fresh Crisis Rocks Rivers State Over Council Election
Some members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State and other politicians on Thursday morning held a protest against the forthcoming council elections in the state.
The protesting PDP members and others, including those from All Progressives Congress, stormed the party’s secretariat on the Port Harcourt-Aba expressway and proceeded to the Police Headquarters on Moscow Road to show their displeasure against the forthcoming elections.
The protesting politicians were said to be those loyal to the immediate former governor of the state and current Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike.
The protesters submitted a petition at the police headquarters and urged security agencies not to participate in the local government polls.
The protesters, led by PDP Chairman Aaron, accused the state’s governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, of disregarding the rule of law.
Aaron told the police there is a subsisting court order barring the state government from going ahead with the election. The protesters urged the police to obey the court order by not providing security during the polls.
On September 30, a Federal High Court in Abuja barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from releasing the 2023 voter register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC).
INEC also later said it had not released the voter register to RSIEC for the conduct of the election, in deference to the judgement of the federal high court.
Meanwhile, a Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt had ordered the RSIEC to proceed with the local government council elections scheduled for October 5.
Justice I. P. C. Igwe gave order while delivering judgement in Suit No: PHC/2696/CS/2024, filed by Action Peoples Party (APP) as Plaintiff/Applicant against RSIEC, Rivers State Government, and Governor of Rivers State as 1st to 3rd Respondents.
In the certified court judgement which was issued on Friday, September 4, 2024, Justice Igwe directed RSIEC to use the 2023 voters’ register for the elections.
The court emphasised the importance of conducting elections within three months to fill vacant council positions, as mandated by the Supreme Court in Suit No SC/CV/343/2024 delivered on July 11, 2024, to the effect that all states without democratically-elected local government councils in place should conduct elections into their respective local government councils within three (3) months from the date of the aforesaid judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
The court order maintained that based on the judgement of the Supreme Court, the defendants are bound to conduct elections into Local Government Councils in Rivers State on or before the expiration of the said three (3) months period, on October 5, 2024.
However, the incumbent governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has vowed to proceed with the election and has declared Thursday and Friday as public holidays.
“Any failure on our part to conduct the local government election would be a clear disobedience of the Supreme Court’s mandatory order that no state government must administer the local government councils in Nigeria with unelected officers; with the attendant consequence of the state and the people being denied the statutory allocations due to the 23 local government areas of the state,” the governor said.
