The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC, has announced October 5th, 2024, as the scheduled date for the conduct of elections in the 23 local government areas of the state.
According to vanguard, Justice Adolphus Enebeli (rtd), Chairman of the RSIEC, made the declaration on Monday at the Commission's headquarters in Port Harcourt, assuring all stakeholders that the election will be free, fair, and nonviolent, and that votes would count.
However, the stakeholders meeting on Monday was not without controversy, as the state's two opposition political parties, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP), boycotted the event.
Chief Tony Okocha, the caretaker committee chairman, CTC, of the APC in the state, justified himself, claiming that he was not officially invited to the meeting and learned about it through social media.
"I wasn't invited. My party was not invited. My party is too large to not be properly invited to an event like that. I'm too big to attend an event to which I wasn't officially invited. RSIEC refused to officially ask me to serve as the chairman of a significant opposition party in the state.
"I saw information about the stakeholder meeting on social media. I was at church on Sunday and sent an email to the chairman of RSIEC, who responded that APC was a key shareholder. "My party can only participate in the election if things are done correctly," Okocha stated.
Hon Solsuema Osaro, the Rivers state chairman of the interparty advisory council, IPAC, also stated that 17 of the state's 19 political parties will actively participate in the next local government elections in October.