The political impasse in Rivers State continues unabated, with the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) boycotting a stakeholders’ meeting to discuss the conduct of local government elections in the state’s 23 councils.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) has announced October 5, 2024, as the date for the election.
RSIEC Chairman, Justice Adolphus Enebeli (rtd), made the announcement on Monday at the Commission’s headquarters, amidst the absence of the two major political parties.
Chief Tony Okocha, the APC’s caretaker committee chairman, alleged that he received no official invitation.
“I was not invited. My party was not invited. My party is too big not to be officially invited for an event like that. I am too big to attend an event I was not officially invited. RSIEC refused to officially invite me as a chairman of a major opposition party in the state.
“I saw the information of the stakeholders meeting on social media. I was in the church on Sunday, and I sent a mail to the chairman of RSIEC, and he replied that APC was a major stakeholder. My party can only take part in the election if things are done right,” Okocha said.
Meanwhile, Hon Solsuema Osaro, the Rivers state chairman of the interparty advisory council (IPAC), confirmed that 17 out of 19 political parties in the state will participate in the elections.
“17 parties were in the stakeholder meeting. I want to thank the Governor, His Excellency Sir Siminalayi Fubara, for his determination to allow for the conduct of the elections. APC and the PDP were not in the meeting. We don’t know why they were not there. But I can assure you that the 17 parties at the meeting will gladly participate in the election,” he said.
The Commission’s chairman, Justice Enebeli, speaking at the Parley said, “We are practicing the tenets of democracy. The tenets of democracy thrive on certain principles, which is what we are seeing here.
“The citizens have the right for political participation. The majority may rule, but that rule is counterbalanced by the rights of the minority.”
The stakeholders’ meeting was attended by security agencies, civil society organizations, the media, and other stakeholders.
There has a political crisis in the state, which began on June 17, 2024, when the tenure of former council chairmen loyal to Minister Nyesom Wike ended. The former chairmen resisted vacating their offices, citing an amended Local Government law, which they claimed extended their tenure by six months.
The governor, Siminalayi Fubara, eventually appointed caretaker chairmen committees for the council. He also mandated that protocols for the conduct of local government elections be made, immediately.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Police Force subsequently have taken over the council secretariats, pending a federal high court judgment.
