Intrigues that shaped the tussle for control of Rivers local councils

The recent pronouncement by the Supreme Court affirming the autonomy of local councils seems to have restored public interest in grassroots governance. Against that background, the recent local council elections in Rivers State suggests the resolve of the masses to reclaim their power in a democracy, ANN GODWIN reports.

For a greater part of Nigeria’s 25 years of democracy, the people of Rivers State have been used to mouthing power to the people. That was partly because the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been the dominant political party in the state.

But on Saturday, October 5, part of the electorate in the state demonstrated that apart from mouthing power to the people, which is the PDP slogan, the real democratic power rests with them. They decided to call the bluff of godfatherism and turned out en masse to make their votes count in the local council elections held on that day.

Although some opposition camps boycotted the polls, the energy and enthusiasm displayed by the electorate that participated showed that indeed grassroots governance belongs to the people. The gladiators on both sides fought with both hands for victory in the polls, knowing that whoever captures power at the grassroots has not only covered a lot of political mileage, but also mounted the stage for future political exploits.

There is no doubt that the Supreme Court judgment, which restored autonomy to the local councils with its declaration that local government allocations should no longer be extended to states without elected local council executives, gingered the people’s interest in the polls.

In Rivers State, the internally generated revenue of the local councils and federal accounts accruals are huge. The control of these funds could be the thrust of the latest fight between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his estranged benefactor, Nyesom Wike, the minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

While the FCT minister, who had assumed control of the structures of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and that of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State was opposed to the conduct of the election, the incumbent had other ideas and insisted on going ahead with it.

With eyes to the future, both camps stuck to their guns. If the election had not been held, it would have become a big plus for the minister and his group as they would have succeeded in crippling the local governments financially. It meant that the allocations coming into the local governments would stop after the October deadline given by the Federal Government before the implementation of the Supreme Court judgment.

Fubara also knew that conducting the elections and supporting his loyalists to win would significantly extend the roots of his political structure. It could be recalled that the tenure of the council chairmen loyal to the Minister was extended by six months by the embattled House of Assembly members led by Martins Amaewhule after the feud between Wike and Fubara occurred but the governor did not recognise the chairmen as he immediately installed Caretaker Committee chairmen across the local councils .

The Judiciary
The judiciary appeared to be the worst victim in the crisis. There were several conflicting court judgments on the matter; some in support of Fubara’s decision to hold election while the Federal High Court in Abuja backed the minister’s camp that the election must not hold.

This scenario heightened tension in the state and even the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) got involved and denied releasing the voters register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC). However, RSIEC till date maintains that INEC released the documents to them. Men of the Nigeria Police also refused to participate in the polls citing a court order barring them from doing so but the governor didn’t budge on his decision.

The outcome of the controversial council polls, boycotted by the PDP and the All Progressives Congress (APC), saw APP winning 22 chairmanship seats while Action Alliance (AA) won one. Winners were sworn in less than 24 hours after the declaration of the results.

A day after their swearing in, thugs and arsonists returned to the streets in wild protests. They attacked council secretariats in Ikwere, Eleme and Emohua and set buildings on fire. About five persons were feared dead with several other injuries sustained and property worth several billions of naira also set ablaze.

Although normalcy has returned to the state, Wike and Fubara appear to be ready for a fight to finish. Fubara, who undertook a tour of the affected secretariats, has set up a Panel of Inquiry to investigate the killings and arson in some of the councils.

Wike, however, blamed the governor for not obeying the agreement they signed with President Bola Tinubu to resolve the political crisis in the state. He disclosed that his lawyers would approach the court to stop the judicial panel of enquiry set up by Fubara to investigate the causes of the mayhem.

“The governor has said that he knew those who masterminded the mayhem. He fingered the opposition for the attack. Why then waste the public funds to investigate what you should know?” he asked, even as he denied having any personal issue with the governor or making any demand from him.

The way it is, the end to the political turmoil seems not in sight, but stakeholders have advised the duo to take their battle to the court instead of destroying public properties and killing innocent people.

The National Coordinator, South-South Elders Forum, Anabs Sara-Igbe, said: “The former governor was behaving and talking as if he is god and now that the election has held and he does not have the grassroots in his pocket anymore, the state is liberated. ”

Sara-Igbe, a former spokesman of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), alleged that the troubles and violence witnessed across the local councils after the elections were because power was taken away from one man.

Also, the Coordinator of Supreme Council of Sim Worldwide, Simeon Onuchukwu, said that residents of the state were subjected to extreme slavery because of one man’s interest, asserting that the people are now free and happy following Fubara’s resolve to liberate them despite the resistance from all corners.

Onuchukwu said: “We thank Governor Fubara for liberating Rivers State; he has done what no one was able to do. Rivers State has been in eight years of serious dictatorship and slavery. You can see, the entire Rivers people are happy.”

Onuchukwu also condemned attacks on some local council secretariats and commended the governor for setting up a panel of inquiry to investigate the killings.

On his part, the former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Austin Okpara, said the outcome of the local council elections showed that the people of the state were tired of oppression and dictatorship.

Okpara said the state now has a governor who wants to serve the people, not an emperor. He said: “What it portends is that Rivers people are tired of oppression; Rivers people are tired of emperorship; Rivers people are tired of dictatorship.”

Mr. Amadi Akujiobi, who works in the State Ministry of Information, said workers were inspired to participate in the polls because Fubara, who came from a civil service background, listens, discusses with them and addresses their challenges.

He also pointed out that the governor is a man who matches his words with actions unlike previous administrations. Amadi said, “The past eight years for workers were like opening old wounds; it was hellish. But when Fubara came, he did not only approve promotions for workers, he paid all our entitlements.

“People who have been stagnated for years experienced a career shift; the work environment received a face lift and today, we are all happy.” Also speaking with excitement, Mrs. Elizabeth Ndu, who sells food stuffs at Mile 2 market in Port Harcourt, stated that traders were abandoned and neglected by previous governments but Fubara is addressing their challenges.

“I was not afraid of police withdrawal from the polls. I was happy the election took place because I know it will usher in a new dawn. That’s why I voted,” she said.

A former chairman of Andoni Local Council, Dr Gogo-Ogute Isaiah, said he was spurred to go out and vote due to Fubara’s friendly policies. A former Khana Council chairman during former governor Rotimi Amaechi’s tenure, Akpbari Celestine, said the situation of the state was enough reason to compel anyone to yearn for change.

“Those who did not benefit from the last administration would want to benefit from the current one, especially workers. So, Fubara is having organic support that cuts across party lines just like Amaechi had done,” he said.

He, however, argued that it was impossible for only APP to win the polls while popular parties like Labour Party (LP) and Social Democratic Party (SDP) couldn’t win any seat.

The Publicity Secretary of the Tony Okocha-led APC, Chibuike Ikenga, however, insisted that there were no local council elections in the state.
“Clearly, there is a subsisting court judgment from the Federal High Court, Abuja, under Justice Peter Lifiu, which set aside all the processes for the election.

“So, all the actions taken by RSIEC in furtherance of the election were halted because they did not comply with the extant laws. Our position as APC on the polls has not changed,” he said.

He, however, advocated for peace, saying: “We are a law abiding party, we expect due process to take its place; rule of law must be obeyed and the court should settle whatever is happening in Rivers State.

“We believe in peace, oneness; it is in our interest that peace, progress and development thrives and it is only in an environment of peace and unity that development can thrive,” he said.

Similarly, Okachi Ordu, Chief of Staff to former Ikwere Local Council chairman, Samuel Nwanosike, claimed that the camp was still in charge of the council.

He said: “We are still in charge; there was no election on Saturday. If the governor had obeyed the court order from Abuja, what happened on Monday wouldn’t have happened. So, we are waiting for the right time for a proper election to take place in Rivers State.”

Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Information and Communications, Joseph Johnson, has assured that the government is not deterred by the crisis situation in the state.

“The Simplified Movement is resolute in spite of the shenanigans of security agencies. We are not deterred, and we will ensure peace prevails. The governor is on course to delivering dividends of democracy,” he said.