By Mark Lenu
In defending Rivers State again, the Edi-Abali of Kalabari Kingdom, Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo Asari has reacted to the decision of a federal high court in Abuja for restraining INEC from releasing voter register to RSIEC.
The court had in its ruling restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from releasing the national voter register for Rivers to RSIEC.
Peter Lifu, the presiding judge, gave the order on Friday following a motion ex parte filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC).
INEC, the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), the attorney-general of the federation (AGF), the inspector-general of police (IGP), and the Department of State Services (DSS) were 1st to 5th defendants, respectively.
In the application, the APC asked the court to restrain INEC from releasing the national voter register to RSIEC which the state electoral umpire would have used for the conduct of the state LGA elections.
The APC said releasing the register to RSIEC will contravene “Items 11 and 12 on the concurrent legislative list as cited in Part II of the Second Schedule of the 1999 Constitution as well as sections 28, 29, and 103(3) of the Electoral Act, 2022”.
The party also asked the court to restrain the IGP and DSS from providing security cover or participating in the Rivers LGA elections that would be conducted by RSIEC on October 5.
In his reaction, Alhaji Asari said: “The APC went to a Federal High Court in Abuja to obtain an ex parte injunction, restraining INEC from releasing voter register to RSIEC.
“This order of the federal high court came after the Supreme Court had declared that all LGs must have democratically elected chairmen and councilors.
“The decision of the federal high court is an infringement on the right of the state government. It means the federal high court is saying that the Rivers State Government through RSIEC should not conduct the LG election.
“That is to say that if the LG election is not conducted, there will be no functional local governments, and funds meant for the running of the local governments will be withheld.”
