- Safiu Kehinde
The Rivers State Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (Rtd), has declared the local government election held in the state as peaceful and orderly conducted.
NPO Reported that Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) had on Saturday’s conducted the LG elections rerun months after the Supreme Court’s declaration of the October 2024 election conducted by the suspended Rivers governor, Siminalayi Fubara, as null and void.
With the state emergency rule declared on Rivers by President Bola Tinubu gradually coming to an end, the RSIEC had conducted the LG election to enable the release of the local government’s withheld Federal allocation ahead of the return of Fubara.
Addressing newsmen in Port Harcourt, Ibas, who took over the helm of affairs following Fubara’s six-month suspension, described the LG election as a decisive step toward restoring full democratic governance at the grassroot.
The Rivers administrator expressed satisfaction with the comportment of voters and election officials, noting that their conduct created a calm and secure environment for the polls.
He reportedly highlighted the voter turnout and the serenity at polling units as evidence of Rivers people’s eagerness to reclaim and participate in grassroots governance.
“I am very happy with what I have witnessed today. The process has been notably peaceful, from the significant turnout to the orderly conduct of both voters and election officials.
“I am confident that at the end of the day, we will have a credible set of results that we will all be proud of as a state,” Vice Admiral Ibas stated
The administrator further described the conduct of the election, based on situation reports from across the 23 local government areas. as seamless and calm.
“Generally, the situation has been calm and seamless across the state. We have not received any major negative reports, which is a testament to the collective desire for peace and normalcy,
“Certainly, all indigenes of Rivers State want and deserve grassroots leadership they can call their own.
“That is what this process represents,” he stressed. “Facilitating this foundational tier of democracy is a core objective of my mandate: to put the state back on a stable, democratic path and empower its people.” He added.