Tension is at a feverish pitch with a likelihood of a breakdown of law and order as the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission holds the local government elections this Saturday. Will the elections be held? Will it not? Would there be peace during the conduct of the elections? These are questions Nigerians wait with bated
Tension is at a feverish pitch with a likelihood of a breakdown of law and order as the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission holds the local government elections this Saturday. Will the elections be held? Will it not? Would there be peace during the conduct of the elections? These are questions Nigerians wait with bated breath for answers.
The unfortunate triggers for the potential crisis in the State are judicial pronouncements from courts of coordinate jurisdiction; one in Rivers State and the other in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Ironically, the judiciary that should promote and adjudicate to usher peace in normal climes is responsible for heightening tension and conflict in the oil-rich state.
A State High Court in Rivers State presided over by Justice I.P.C. Igwe had affirmed that the local government elections scheduled for October 5th, 2024, should proceed as planned. But its contemporary in Abuja presided over by Justice Peter Lifu barred the elections holding, affirming that conditions precedent as stipulated in the Electoral Act have not been met with the issuance of 90-day notice.
It subsequently ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to release the voter register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission. Local government elections in many states in Nigeria are guided by laws promulgated by the State Houses of Assembly.
Justice Igwe’s judgement asserts the constitutional obligation to ensure democratically elected local government councils in Rivers State citing Section 7, subsection 1 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999, as amended), which mandates the state to make provisions for local government elections.
“The Defendants are bound to make adequate provision for election into the Local Government Councils of Rivers State and to ensure that the affairs of the Local Government Councils in Rivers State are conducted by democratically elected Local Government Councils.” he ruled.
The court also ruled that the RSIEC is entitled to use the National Register of Voters from the 2023 General Elections, compiled by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), for the local government elections.
Justice Igwe’s ruling referenced a recent Supreme Court decision (Suit No SC/CV/343/2024) that required states without democratically elected local government councils to conduct elections within three months. This decision has set a deadline for Rivers State to hold its local government elections by October 5th, 2024.
On the other hand, Justice Lifu ruled that the RSIEC acted prematurely in setting the October 5 election date, stating that it did so without adhering to the necessary legal requirements including a provision of the local government election law, particularly the requirement to publish a 90-day notice before the election.
Justice Lifu ruled that the updating and revision of the voters’ register must be completed before a legally valid election date could be set. He ordered INEC not to provide the certified voters’ register to RSIEC until all legal stipulations were met.
What the conflicting judgments have done is to set machinery in motion for a breakdown of law and order and create a situation of anarchy in the State. The two judgments also made consequential orders to the police and other security agencies: one to support the election and the other to prevent the election from holding.
Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission Preparedness
Justice Adolphus Enebeli, Chairman RVSIEC
On Thursday, September 26, 2024, the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission Chairman, Justice Adolphus Enebeli formally displayed the voter register to be used for the election saying it was obtained late last year. He said the Commission had proactively obtained all the necessary documents and materials in 2023 before the Court cases started on all fronts.
He remarked at the ceremony that “A wise man can never be taken unawares. We are proactive. We will follow due process. It is a gift of patience and planning. I am not a last-minute man. I plan. So, all these things were concluded since last year.
Truly, election is not an event but a process. For the Rivers State local government election according to information on the website of the electoral umpire shows that the process commenced on July 1, 2024, when the RSIEC held a meeting with the political parties and other stakeholders and later the same day issued a notice of election, giving the mandatory 90-day notice following the RSIEC law of 2018.
Different dates were set for other events like the selling of nominations to candidates, and party primaries. August was for the nomination of candidates by the political parties as well as the replacement of candidates which terminated on September 4, 2024.
Raging Superiority Battle Between Governor Fubara and His Predecessor
There has been no love lost between Governor Sim Fubara of Rivers State and his predecessor, Chief Nyesom Wike. The two camps have engaged in verbal war in recent times and the local government is a test of the political weight of the camps. The former Governor’s camp which had seized the PDP structures from the incumbent governor had taken a position to boycott the election. The Governor’s camp had switched his loyalists to the Action Peoples Party to contest the local government election.
Typically, in Nigeria, the party of the incumbent government in the State often sweeps the local government polls from Councillorship to other offices. By implication, the APP may win the local government elections and strengthen its hold on power in the State while the camp of the former governor holds the party structure.
The stakes are high as the battle of wits rages. The Governor on Monday paid an unscheduled visit to the office of the RSIEC when news from the Federal High Court filtered in that the elections have been barred. In his brief interaction with the Chairman and members of the electoral body, he enquired about the election to which they affirmed their readiness. He assured them of his support and reminded them of the principle of “the first-in-time” in law. This principle says who is first in time is stronger in law.
The Governor and his camp would like the election to be held while their opponents wouldn’t want it for its political implications. But how to prevent it becomes an issue? Would there be violence, or would it be peaceful? Only time will tell. If the order to stop the election does not stand and democratically elected Chairmen and Councillors emerge, it will be a game-changer for the politics of Rivers State. The Governor would have further consolidated his hold on power to the disheartening of his predecessor and his loyalists.
