The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has cautioned political merchants against meddling in the upcoming local government elections scheduled for October 5. IPAC’s National Chairman, Yusuf Dantalle, emphasized the need for the elections to be conducted without interference during a press briefing in Abuja yesterday.
In Port Harcourt, a protest involving members and supporters of various political parties began at 7:45 a.m. near the PDP Secretariat, opposing Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s decision to proceed with the polls amidst ongoing legal disputes.
A Rivers State High Court had permitted the local government elections, ordering the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to provide the voters’ register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) for the elections. However, a conflicting ruling from a Federal High Court restrained INEC from giving the RSIEC the voters’ register. While INEC stated it had not provided the voters’ register, RSIEC claimed it had obtained it prior to the court cases.
Both the Rivers APC’s Caretaker Committee Chairman, Tony Okocha, and the PDP’s state Chairman, Chukwuemeka Aaron, alleged that the election process was marred by illegality and declared their parties would not participate.
Despite the protests and legal challenges, Governor Fubara remains steadfast in declaring the election “sacrosanct” during a meeting with IPAC at the Government House on Wednesday. The protest march, under heavy security presence, proceeded towards Azikwe Road, where demonstrators delivered a protest letter to the State Office of the DSS and the Rivers Police Command.
Dantalle also appealed to the new Chief Justice of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC) to investigate and sanction judicial officers whose actions undermine democracy. He reiterated IPAC’s proposal to the National Assembly to abolish State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs) and have INEC oversee all local government elections.
In a statement, IPAC asserted, “Nigerians are united in their desire to foster sustainable democracy and development and will resist any attempt to subvert, truncate, or destabilize our hard-earned democracy. Elections are the essence of democracy, particularly at the third tier of government, which is closest to the people. Local government elections must be supported and encouraged by all advocates of representative governance in Nigeria.”