The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State has called on the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) to ensure prompt conduct of local government elections ahead of the expiration of the tenure of the serving chairmen and councillors.
Chairman of the APC caretaker committee in the state, Chief Tony Okocha, made the call while speaking with newsmen in Port Harcourt shortly after members of Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) in the state visited the RSIEC chairman, Justice Adolphus Enebeli in his office.
The visit was to ascertain the level of preparedness of the state electoral umpire for the local government election which is expected to hold in a few months.
He stated that the Supreme Court had since outlawed the setting up of caretaker committee in council areas, hence the need to ensure that elections into council offices were conducted as and when due, to avoid any form of vacuum in that level of government.
Okocha applauded IPAC members and RSIEC for engaging in meaningful discussion during the meeting.
“The tenure of the serving chairmen and councillors in Rivers State will end soon and it has become necessary for RSIEC to notify the political parties about the timetable for the elections within the stipulated time,” the APC caretaker committee chairman stated.
Okocha, who reaffirmed the readiness of the APC to participate fully in the election, said the party is aiming to win in the 23 local government areas and 319 wards.
He expressed confidence in the calibre of the chairman and members of the commission and their capability to deliver a credible election in the state.
The APC chairman called on Governor Siminalayi Fubara and security agencies to ensure that they provided an enabling environment to ensure a seamless local government election.
