Minefield

Rivers State devolved into violence on Monday, resulting in the deaths of the brother of Governor Siminialayi Fubara’s Chief of Staff…

Rivers State devolved into violence on Monday, resulting in the deaths of the brother of Governor Siminialayi Fubara’s Chief of Staff, Edison Ehie, a newly elected councillor’s father, and three others. Thugs torched three Local Government Area (LGA) secretariats after Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun withdrew the police guarding them. The disruption affected the planned resumption of 23 newly elected LGA chairmen and the swearing-in of 314 councillors. The Peoples Democratic Party officials opposing Saturday’s poll reportedly seized the Emohua LGA council. The PDP and All Progressives Congress rejected the election’s outcome, claiming no election occurred in Rivers.

The run-up to the LGA poll was fraught with seemingly acrimonious court judgements both for and against the election, which caused chaos in the political community. On 30 September, the Action Peoples Party (APP) condemned a Federal High Court order in Abuja that barred the Independent National Electoral Commission from releasing the voters’ register for local government elections in the state. It was reported that the same judge, ten days earlier, had ruled in a case filed by the APP against INEC, the pro-Wike lawmakers, and the PDP that the PDP National Legal Adviser could not appoint legal representation for the PDP against the state chapter of the party. These discrepancies in judgements have also drawn criticism from former President Goodluck Jonathan, who is seen as a political influence on Wike. Failure to comply with the subsequent court order has led to the crisis following the election, which is the latest manifestation of the rivalry between the incumbent governor and his predecessor and former boss. When political leaders choose the path of godfatherism to emerge, as has been the case in Rivers, it is inevitable that the godfather will demand obedience, which will ultimately lead to confrontation. The federal government’s refusal to provide security through the police can be seen as a demonstration of its position, which aligns with Nyesom Wike, who is now the federal minister of the FCT. For the uninitiated, the importance of the LGA election contrasts sharply with what an ideal LGA election should represent. Under normal circumstances, local governments are supposed to provide basic functions such as sanitation, licensing, community health, and education at the grassroots level. However, the failures of the 1976 constitution and its successor, the 1999 constitution, to ensure the complete independence of the third tier of government mean that LGAs, in practical terms, serve as mobilisation tools for state governments, down to the extent of controlling their operating budgets. In the Nigerian political scene, they are used as party machinery and enforcement tools for elections. The clash between Wike and Fubara stems from the control of these structures, and the manifestation of this rivalry suggests that no one observing this spectacle would conclude that the conflict is advantageous for improving the state’s economic fortunes.