Court of Appeal Validates Rivers State Local Government Elections Conducted Under Governor Fubara

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld the local government elections held in Rivers State under Governor Siminalayi Fubara’s administration.

This decision overturned an earlier ruling by the Federal High Court, which had nullified the council elections.

The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) had previously declared the Action Peoples Party (APP) the winner in 22 out of the 23 local government areas in the state. The commission’s chairman, Justice Adolphus Enebeli (retd), announced the results at the RSIEC office in Port Harcourt, noting that the outcome for Etche Local Government Area and 319 councillorship positions would be released after collation was complete.

The election, conducted in 6,866 polling units across the state, saw the participation of 18 political parties.

However, the All Progressives Congress (APC) contested the results, citing alleged violations of the Electoral Act, and successfully challenged the election at the Federal High Court.

The appellate court, however, ruled that the Federal High Court lacked the jurisdiction to hear the APC’s case, emphasizing that the Electoral Act does not govern local government elections.

In its judgment, the Court of Appeal affirmed that the Federal High Court had no legal authority to rule on the matter and clarified that local government elections are not subject to the provisions of the Electoral Act, which applies only to federal and state-level elections in Nigeria.

This ruling reinforces the validity of the council elections conducted under Governor Fubara’s administration, affirming RSIEC’s authority in organizing local government polls.