By Mark Lenu
Commercial drivers in Rivers State say they will meet with the Chairman of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, Retired Justice Adolphus Enebell over the forthcoming LG poll.
RSIEC had fixed October 5 for the conduct of the LG election across the 23 LGAs of the state. However, there are doubts if the All Progressives Congress will participate in the election as the ousted caretaker committee chairman of the party. Tony Okocha had repeatedly said the APC would boycott the election.
According to the Chairman of the Urban Drivers Welfare Association, Lekia Isaac, the planned meeting with RSIEC is aimed at confirming if the safety of commercial drivers is guaranteed.
Isaac said his union would also like to know if the election will be held as scheduled, adding that the political tension in the state as well as the court issues surrounding the state politics threaten the possibility of the election on October 5.
“We will formally write the RSIEC Chairman to have an audience with him because we want to be sure of the following:
- Will the election held as scheduled on October 5?
- Will my union participate in the transportation of election personnel and materials?
- Is the safety of our members guaranteed during the election?
“These are some of the questions we need answers from RSIEC before we will participate in the LG election,” Isaac said.
After the immediate past elected LG chairmen vacated office on June 17 this year, RSIEC conveyed an all-inclusive stakeholders meeting where it announced October 5 for the conduct of the election.
A court of competent jurisdiction had also restrained INEC from releasing the voter register to RSIEC, a document that is paramount to the successful conduct of the forthcoming election.
The lingering political fight between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor, the FCT Minister Nyesom Wike had also torn the PDP apart, leading to a sharp divide at the state legislative arm of government.
