Tension continues to soar in Rivers State as indigenes woke up on Saturday to the news of a suspected explosion that rocked the secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC), led by the factional caretaker committee chairman, Chief Tony Okocha.
In the early hours of Saturday, suspected arsonists detonated explosives at the state secretariat of the APC in Port Harcourt, the state capital. A short video clip circulating on social media indicated that the incident, suspected to involve dynamites, damaged the main gate, the security post, and parts of the building.
Chief Tony Okocha, in a brief statement, accused supporters of Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara of being behind the attack. He claimed, “At the wee hours of Saturday, pro-Fubara civilian soldiers detonated dynamites at our office. The second attempt to set it ablaze was foiled as the security at the gate quickly put out the fire.”
The APC, led by Okocha, had announced its withdrawal from the local government election scheduled for today, citing legal reasons. The intentions of the suspected arsonists remain unclear.
In a related development, the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has announced that its members will fully participate as observers in the October 5, 2024, Local Government election in Rivers State, stating that there is no legal impediment against it.
This position was expressed in a communiqué signed by all eight chairmen of the NBA branches in Rivers State, which was read to newsmen at the Conference Hall of the NBA Building in Port Harcourt late on Friday.
The Chairperson of the Port Harcourt Branch of the NBA, Cordelia U. Eke, who read the communiqué on behalf of the other chairmen, emphasized that statutory bodies cannot be prevented from performing their constitutional duties. Eke reaffirmed that local government elections are part of Nigeria’s democratic process as enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).