Governor Siminalayi Fubara has confirmed that the long-awaited local government elections in Rivers State will be held on October 5, 2024.
The announcement came during a state broadcast on the upcoming elections, following legal challenges and directives from both the Supreme Court and the Rivers State High Court.
Governor Fubara noted that the tenure of the 23 Local Government Chairmen and Councilors expired in June 2023.
In response, caretaker committees were instituted to temporarily oversee the councils.m However, a Supreme Court ruling in July 2024 mandated the cessation of unelected local government officers.
“The Supreme Court effectively outlawed the administration of our local government councils with unelected officers and made several orders including the immediate stoppage of statutory allocations to Local Government Councils without democratically elected local government councils,” the governor stated.
Acknowledging the importance of upholding democratic governance, Governor Fubara highlighted that compliance with the court ruling was extended by three months following an intervention by the President.
This extension is set to expire on October 31, 2024. “On the strength of these positive developments, I directed the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) to take definite steps to conduct local government elections for the 23 Local Government Councils of Rivers State,” the governor added.
The RSIEC has since prepared for the elections, with 17 out of 18 registered political parties, including the All Progressives Congress (APC), filing candidates for the election.
According to Governor Fubara, “RSIEC has expressed and demonstrated concrete and verifiable capacity and readiness to conduct the 2024 Rivers State Local Government Elections.”
Governor Fubara also emphasized the legal backing for the elections, citing a Rivers State High Court ruling which directed that the elections be conducted using the 2023 INEC voters register.
“The legal impetus of RSIEC to conduct the local government elections was further strengthened by the judgment of the Rivers State High Court which positively directed the Governor of Rivers State, the Government of Rivers State, and the RSIEC to conduct the scheduled local government elections on the 5th of October 2024.”
With all preparations in place, Governor Fubara reiterated the commitment of his administration to conducting the elections as scheduled. He urged citizens to participate, assuring them of adequate security.
“The State Government has provided the necessary funds and logistics for RSIEC, which has assured me that it is fully prepared and ready to conduct and deliver a fair, free, and credible Local Government Council election as scheduled.”
To facilitate voter participation, Governor Fubara declared public holidays on October 3 and 4, 2024, allowing citizens to travel to their communities for the elections. He also announced restrictions on movement from midnight on October 4 until 5:00 p.m. on election day, except for those on essential duties.
Governor Fubara closed by thanking the State’s Security High Command for their cooperation and urged all residents to support the process. “We all owe our State the commitment to support RSIEC to succeed in delivering on its constitutional duty to conduct a free, fair, and credible Local Government Council election,” he said.
The elections are expected to usher in a new set of democratically elected leaders to administer the 23 local government councils of Rivers State.
