Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has officially sworn in 23 newly elected local government chairmen at a ceremony held at the Executive Council Chambers of the Government House in Port Harcourt.
The event, which took place on Sunday, followed the Rivers State Independent National Electoral Commission (RSIEC)’s local government elections held the previous day.
Bauchi State Governor and Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum, Bala Mohammed, was in attendance.
Governor Fubara expressed satisfaction with the smooth conduct of the elections, attributing the success to divine intervention.
He also extended his appreciation to President Bola Tinubu for upholding democratic principles.
Fubara, who assured Mohammed that he is still a member of PDP, however, said that a desperate situation requires desperate action.
According to him, what his administration did with the support of the people was to salvage the local government councils.
He vowed to protect the state’s assets without resorting to the confrontational tactics employed by his political opponents, which he believes could lead to instability.
In his address to the newly sworn-in chairmen, Governor Fubara urged them to serve their communities humbly, noting that local government areas are in dire need of development.
He reminded them that the real political structure lies with the people they are meant to serve.
Earlier in the day, the RSIEC had issued certificates of return to the victorious chairmen. Following a tense electoral process, the Action People’s Party (APP) secured 22 out of the 23 chairmanship positions in the oil-rich state. However, results for the Etche Local Government Area were delayed due to ongoing collation.
RSIEC Chairman, Adolphus Enebeli, had announced that Uzodinma Nwafor of the Action Alliance (AA) won the chairmanship seat for Etche LGA, declaring the elections as free, fair, and credible, with a strong voter turnout. Despite the challenges, Enebeli commended the residents for their participation and highlighted that the principle of bi-location was adopted to address the electoral complexities faced.
The declaration of results was overseen by members of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), independent electoral bodies from across Nigeria, and the Nigerian Bar Association, who served as observers.
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