A Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has barred the Rivers State Sole Administrator from appointing Administrators to run the 23 local council areas in the state.
The order was issued on Monday April 7, 2025 by Justice, Adamu Turaki Muhammed in a Suit marked FHC/PH/CS/46/2025, filed by Pilex Centre for Civic Education Initiative led by Courage Msirimovu against the Sole Administrator (Ibok Ekwe Ibas) in his official capacity.
The suit filed on March 28, 2025 contains several reliefs, among them is a prayer that the court restrains the respondent or his agents from appointing the Sole Administrator or whatever name called for the 23 LGAs.
Granting the reliefs of the motion, the presiding judge said he found enough reason to grant the prayers and fixed April 14, 2025, for hearing.
The tenure of elected local council chairmen who worked with former Governor, Nyesom Wike, ended in June 2023, but they secured what they called term elongation from the state assembly led by Martin Amaehule.
On expiry of their tenures, Gov Sim Fubara dissolved the councils and appointed caretaker chairmen. Both camps began to strive for control of the LGAs knowing they are usually the power base of anyone eager to control the political structure of the state and most other states.
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The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) fixed election for October 5, 2024, but the All Progressives Congress (APC) faction loyal to Nyesom Wike, the FCT Minister, took RSIEC to court.
The election went ahead defying the pending lawsuit.
However when the matter ended at the Supreme Court on February 28, 2025 in favour of the Wike-backed APC led by Tony Okocha, the governor removed the elected chairmen that had been nullified and asked heads of local council administration to take over pending a fresh election.
This was kicked against by the APC led by Okocha and the Martin Amaewhule-led lawmakers who mounted a hunt for the RSIEC chairman.
It was at this point that the State of Emergency was declared in the state by President Bola Tinubu and installing a Sole Administrator.
Governor Fubara’s camp however says the Sole Administrator was heading toward appointing administrators to run the LGAs when the constitution did not permit such.
The decision by the Pilex Centre to secure the court order may indicating that those penciled down for the appointment by the sole administrator may come from the Wike camp, who welcomed the state of emergency and who have been hailing the Sole Administrator.
