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Rivers State braces for a decisive local government election today, a contest widely seen as a test of Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike’s political dominance in his home state.
The poll comes just weeks before the expiration of the six-month state of emergency declared in March by President Bola Tinubu, and months after the Supreme Court nullified the 2024 council elections that were swept by Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s loyalists.
Ahead of today’s contest, Wike’s allies, many of them former PDP stalwarts, defected to the Tony Okocha-led All Progressives Congress (APC), where they secured nomination forms and were cleared by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC). Out of the 23 LGAs, Wike-backed candidates are contesting under the APC in 20 councils, while PDP candidates linked to him are running in three key areas: Obio-Akpor, Port Harcourt, and Ogba-Egbema-Ndoni.
Of the 16 political parties cleared by RSIEC, only PDP and APC mounted visible campaigns, drawing massive crowds at their final rallies.
Legal Hurdles and Court Drama
The exercise nearly collapsed under the weight of multiple lawsuits. In Port Harcourt, Justice Stephen Jumbo dismissed a motion ex parte filed by lawyer Williams Abayomi-Stanley seeking to stop the election. He ruled the case “lacked merit,” but granted substituted service on the defendants and adjourned hearing of the substantive suit to September 10.
Another suit filed by the Initiative for Transparent Strategy and Good Leadership, led by lawyer Chizy Enyi, challenged the legitimacy of the RSIEC board, arguing that its May 2025 appointment by Sole Administrator Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd.) violated constitutional provisions. The group asked the court to set aside all RSIEC actions, including today’s election.
A final-hour challenge came from the Emeka Beke-led APC faction, which alleged that the RSIEC published impostors as APC candidates. Through lawyer Awoala Joybel Emine, the group asked the court to compel recognition of its nominees and nullify any election held without them. Despite the suits, RSIEC insisted the polls would go ahead.
Security Lockdown
Police and security agencies have rolled out heavy measures. Rivers Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Adepoju, warned cultists and troublemakers to stay away:
“All materials for the election will be escorted and there will be a robust security for people to exercise their franchise. We will be there for them before, during and after the elections. Those who want to foment trouble should desist because we are not going to take it kindly. We have also done the needful to ensure that all cult activities and those that may want to disrupt the peace during the elections have been checked.”
Adepoju confirmed restrictions on human and vehicular movements from midnight Friday until 6 p.m. on election day, exempting only essential workers.
On Friday, security agencies including the police, army, navy, NSCDC, and FRSC—embarked on a show of force across Port Harcourt and Obio-Akpor to reassure voters.
Sole Administrator Ibok-Ete Ibas also ordered government offices closed by noon yesterday to enable civil servants return to their communities to vote.
The election is the first major test of strength between Wike and Fubara since their uneasy reconciliation, and could redefine Rivers’ political landscape ahead of 2027.
