Nigeria President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze has urged President Bola Tinubu to call IGP Kayode Egbetokun to order in order for his alleged unprofessional handling of issues concerning Saturday local government election in Rivers State.
Eze, in a statement, accused the police of bias by ordering some officers to raid the headquarters of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) at 1 am on Friday to allegedly cart away materials meant for the council polls.
He also accused Barr. Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) alongside the IGP of brewing tension in the state in a bid to frustrate the council poll.
“It is the duty of the Governor to secure his state and where Police fails the Governor is under obligation to live up to his constitutional responsibilities regardless of the way and he intends to do so,” he said.
Eze urged police officers not to be used as partisan agents of wrongdoers, stressing that if there exists a court order barring them from participating in the election, they should simply comply and steer clear rather than interfering to sabotage the process to allegedly service the ego of the FCT Minister.
Eze also berated Wike over his collaboration with the Police to frustrate the Rivers Local Government Election, describing it as a show of shame.
He said: “The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) had fixed the Council election following a presidential directive to State Governors to ensure democratically elected council administration in the 774 LGAs in line with the recent Supreme Court judgement which frowned at the use of caretaker committees to run council administrations contrary to the letters of the constitution.
“Recall that the Supreme Court of Nigeria by its judgement in SC/CV/343/2024: A-G Federation v A-G Abia State and 35 Ors delivered on 11 July 2024 effectively outlawed the administration of local government councils with appointed officers.
“The apex court made several other orders including the immediate stoppage of statutory allocations to Local Government Councils without democratically elected local government councils.
Unsettled with the development, the camp of the FCT Minister launched a series of schemes to frustrate the election including a foiled attempt by former council chairmen loyal to the FCT Minister to perpetuate themselves in office beyond their exit date through an unlawful amendment of the state local government law by pro-Wike former lawmakers, which amendment was unturned by the court.
They had also made attempts to shop judgements from some Judges who have turned their courts into cash and carry centres to stop the election. And just yesterday, they mobilized protesters to demonstrate against the planned election in a bid to curry public sympathy.
Chief Eze reacting, said the failed protest may not be the last resort of the FCT Minister and his team as an intelligence report reveals a clandestine plot to scuttle the election across the state through cult boys who have been mobilized and briefed with assurances of police protection in that regard.
The APC Chief said Wike’s desperation is to see to the failure of Gov. Fubara’s administration in order to have something to gloat over. All the political parties except PDP, are participating in the election. PDP opted out on the orders of Wike, yet the man who is not interested in the LGA election is doing everything to frustrate the exercise.
The non-participation of pro-Wike PDP in the Rivers LGA election is a clear pointer to cowardice. “They know there won’t be any Avenue for manipulation that is why they opted out and started deploying schemes to sabotage the election, Wike strives in manipulation”, Eze said.
The party chieftain knocked the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner in Rivers State, Dr Johnson Alalibo Sinikiem for allegedly turning himself into a Spokesperson for the pro Wike Group.
” From his comments, it is glaringly clear that the REC does not know the limit of his job specification as an official of INEC. As a matter of fact, INEC has no business with state-organized Elections,” he said.
C Eze commended Gov. Fubara for constantly keeping watch over the RSIEC office and overthrowing a dispatch of Police officers who had, early this morning attempted to cart away sensitive materials meant for the Saturday election to please Wike.
He said the Governor’s resolve to ensure compliance with the Supreme Court judgement and the presidential directive despite the stiff opposition mounted by the FCT Minister and his circle of clowns in the pursuit of their selfish, private vendetta, also merits applause.
