A coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Rivers State and the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) have bickered over the August 30, 2025, local government elections.

While the CSOs insisted on a total boycott of the council polls, which are 28 days from today, for failing to meet the 90-day notice requirement for all political parties, RSIEC claimed that it had not unveiled a fresh timetable for the conduct of the local government elections.

The Commissioner in charge of Political Parties Affairs, Monitoring, and Security, Godfrey Woke, told newsmen that the commission is relying on the existing timetable issued by the former Chairman of the Commission, retired Justice Adolphus Enebele.

But political analysts argued that a restituted board cannot adopt decisions of a dissolved board.

The reconstituted RSEIC board, led by Dr. Michael Odey, had fixed August 30 as the date for the council polls, leaving political parties in the state with about three weeks to prepare for the exercise, as opposed to the usual 90-day notice approved in the electoral guidelines. This development has continued to draw criticism from stakeholders and the general public.

Speaking, Chairman of the Rivers Civil Society Organisations (RIVCSO), Enefaa Georgewill, described the proposed council elections as illegal and urged political parties and the Rivers electorate to boycott them.

He said, “Rivers Civil Society Organisations strongly condemn this and call for a boycott of the unlawful local government elections in Rivers State scheduled for August 30, 2025. This illegitimate exercise threatens the democratic rights of the people of Rivers State and undermines the rule of law”.

“The sole administrator is illegal and lacks any legitimate authority to govern or conduct elections in a democratic setting. Our laws are clear, the constitution is clear: the person who is saddled with the power to conduct elections at the local government level is an electoral commission set up by the elected governor of a state,” he said.

The group stated that the RSIEC’s failure to provide political parties with the 90-day notice required by law further renders the scheduled council elections illegitimate and threatened legal action to ensure the election is not held.

Continuing, the group said, “The newly constituted RSIEC violates the electoral act, which mandates a minimum of 90 days’ notice for an election. The announcement on July 28, 2025, for an election on August 30, 2025, falls short of this requirement, rendering the process invalid. We’re going to do anything legally possible, be it legal action, be it protest and every form of legal action to challenge this illegality. This is our position,” Enefaa said.

However, explaining further, Woke claimed that almost all registered political parties have submitted the expression of interest forms to participate in the August 30 council polls, ahead of today’s deadline for submission. He noted that only one party is facing an issue and added that the commission is not aware of any factions within the APC leadership in the state.