Explosion, protests, as Rivers LG polls proceed

An early morning explosion that shattered the secretariat of the All Progressives Congress along Aba Road in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, welcomed residents to the D-Day; the day of the state local government election.

The weeks and months leading to the election – seen as a deciding factor in who takes over grassroots base in the state – had been tensile

Determined to stop the election, the camp of Nyesom Wike, minister of the federal capital territory and the immediate past governor of the state, who is engaged in a protracted political feud with his successor, Siminalayi Fubara, obtained an order from the federal high court in Abuja presided over by Justice Peter Lifu, barring the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from releasing the 2023 voter register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC).

The court also barred the inspector-general of police and the Department of State Services (DSS) from providing security for the exercise, and on Thursday night, the Rivers State Police Command said it would not provide security for the conduct of the election, citing the court order.

In a statement, Grace Iringe-Koko, police spokesperson in Rivers, said the command is complying with an order of the federal high court in Abuja.

But a Rivers State High Court in Port Harcourt had earlier on September 4, ordered 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.

On Friday, citing this earlier judgment, and provisions of the constitution, both Fubara and RSIEC vowed that the election would hold as scheduled. In a statement late Friday, RSIEC Commissioner for Civil Education/Public Affairs Tobin Tamunotonye, said there is no going back in the election.

“For the avoidance of doubt, we emphasize unequivocally that the 5th October 2024 Local Government Council Election in Rivers State will hold as scheduled, and there is no going back,” the statement said.

Quoting the RSIEC LAW of 2018 and the judgment of Justice I.P.C. Igwe of the High Court of Rivers State delivered on September 4, 2024, and the 1999 Constitution, RSIEC said it is empowered to conduct local government elections in the state.

The commission disclosed that it has transported non-sensitive materials to polling units across the state, and the updated 2023 voter registers have been made available at all 6,366 polling units.

RSIEC described the polls as “critical and in line with the order on RSIEC from the Supreme Court of Nigeria,” and emphasised that “voting centres will be open on time as scheduled as materials have been moved to the respective distribution points for all the polling unit and voters registers also released to election staff.”

The commission also dismissed claims about the resignation of its Chairman, Justice Adolphus Enebeli (retd.).

“The above claim is mischievously false, baseless, and a fabricated lie from the pit of Hell calculated to mislead the public. For the avoidance of doubt the Chairman /Chief Electoral Commissioner is still in charge and has not resigned as maliciously circulated across the media space,” the statement added.

Election Proceeds

On Saturday morning, despite the charged atmosphere leading up it, the election proceeded peacefully.

Checks by Business Hallmark showed that at about 10 am on Saturday, voting was ongoing at the various polling units in Obio/Akpor local government area of the state, with the Action Peoples Party (APP), the political party on whose platform loyalists of Governor Fubara are running, looking poised to carry the day.

Wike had used his influence to take over the structure of the People’s Democratic Party in the state, ensuring that his loyalists emerged as candidates of the party for the election. But Fubara’s loyalists all defected to the APP.

Meanwhile, supporters of Wike, have staged a protest calling on RSIEC to comply with a recent High Court judgment regarding the elections.

The protest, which drew a handful of people, was organized in response to what Wike’s camp described as irregularities in the electoral process.

The demonstrators, carrying placards with messages like “Obey Court Order” and “No Justice, No Election,” expressed frustration over the conduct of the elections and demanded that RSIEC halt the polls and abide by the court’s ruling.

Explosion at Rivers APC secretariat

In the early hours of Saturday, buildings and other property were shattered, as explosives suspected to be dynamite shattered the secretariat of the APC along Aba Road in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital.

The explosion brought down the gate of the secretariat while doors, windows and other property were destroyed.

This is the second time the Chief Tony Okocha-led APC would be experiencing such an attack at its secretariat this year.

A viral video of the incident on social media showed some workers at the facilities going round to ascertain the extent of damage.