Rivers State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has slammed the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, over his recent comments on the state’s just-ended local government election.
In an interview with Channels TV on Tuesday, Wike voiced displeasure with Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s decision to hold the Saturday election against a court ruling.
Recall that Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC, breached statutory requirements by failing to publish the required 90-day notice before setting the poll date.
The court ruled that the Independent National Electoral Commission could not release the voter registration to the RSIEC for election purposes.
Justice Lifu further prohibited the Inspector General of Police and the Department of State Service (DSS) from providing security during the elections.
The decision followed a challenge filed before the judge by the state chapter of the APC, which criticized the RSIEC’s decision to schedule the polls for October 5.
However, the election was held on Saturday, as authorized by Governor Fubara.
The governor’s supporters, who ran for chairperson posts on the Action Peoples Party, or APP, platform, won 22 of the state’s 23 local government areas.
The state has seen several violent conflicts between Wike and Fubara supporters during and after the election.
On Monday, arsonists claiming to be Wike supporters set fire to the Ikwerre Local Government Secretariat.
Gunshots were fired in other secretariats as political thugs attempted to block freshly elected council chiefs from entering their offices.
In his first public comment on the controversy, Wike accused Fubara of undermining Nigerian democracy by refusing to respect the court’s decision.
The former governor further said that Fubara’s decision to dismiss the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Hon. Martin Amaewhule, caused the ongoing issue.
However, in a rapid response, the state’s PDP advised the Minister and his supporters to seek legal remedy if they were unhappy with the election results.
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cc: Daily Post Ng
