A Federal High Court in Port Harcourt barred Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas, Rivers State’s Sole Administrator, from appointing administrators to oversee the state’s 23 local government areas, delivering a jolt to efforts to reshape local governance amid a political crisis.
The ruling came after the PILEX Centre for Civic Education Initiative, led by Courage Msirimovu, filed a motion ex parte challenging Ibas’ authority to install administrators for a six-month period. Justice Adamu Turaki Mohammed granted an interim injunction, halting Ibas and his agents from proceeding until a full hearing set for April 14.
“I find sufficient grounds to grant the reliefs sought,” Turaki said in court, according to legal documents. The decision freezes any moves to replace current heads of local council administration, who’ve been managing affairs since a Supreme Court ruling nullified local elections earlier this year.
The case, filed under Suit No. FHC/PH/CS/46/2025, is the latest twist in Rivers State’s governance saga. It began in June 2023, when elected local government chairmen—many allied with former Gov. Nyesom Wike—saw their terms expire. Efforts to extend their tenure, backed by 27 defected state lawmakers now with the All Progressives Congress, clashed with Gov. Siminalayi Fubara’s push to dissolve the councils and appoint caretakers.
Fubara’s attempt at fresh elections on Oct. 5, 2024, crumbled when the Supreme Court, on Feb. 28, 2025, voided the vote following a challenge from an APC faction led by Tony Okocha, a Wike loyalist. That left local councils in limbo, prompting a state of emergency and Ibas’ appointment as Sole Administrator earlier this year.
PILEX argued that Ibas’ plan to appoint administrators—potentially consolidating power during the emergency—violates democratic norms. The injunction keeps the status quo, but it’s a fragile one. Heads of local administration, unelected and underfunded, are stretched thin in a state where unemployment hovers around 25%, per local estimates, and basic services like road repairs lag.
“This isn’t just about law—it’s about who controls Rivers,” said Mercy Tom-West, a Port Harcourt market trader, over a loaf of bread as news of the ruling spread. “We’re tired of the back-and-forth while nothing gets done.”
The stakes are high in Rivers, an oil-rich state of over 5 million people, where local governments manage billions in monthly federal allocations. In 2024, Nigeria’s Federation Account disbursed more than 1 trillion naira ($600 million) to states, with Rivers’ councils relying heavily on that cash flow, according to government data.
Friday’s ruling isn’t the only legal hurdle for Ibas. A separate suit in Abuja, filed March 26 under FHC/ABJ/CS/572/2025 by lawyer Johnmary Jideobi, seeks to void his appointment as Sole Administrator entirely. That case, slated for April 10, could upend the state’s leadership if it succeeds, legal experts say.
Read More: Ibas Disregards Court Order, Approves Appointment Of Administrators For 23 LGAs In Rivers
The dual court battles reflect a deeper power struggle between Wike, now a federal minister, and Fubara, his successor turned rival. The defected lawmakers, led by Martin Amaewhule, remain a wildcard, pushing Wike’s agenda while Fubara fights to assert control.
For now, Rivers residents like Mercy wait. “I just want someone to fix the potholes on my street,” she said, shaking her head. “Is that too much to ask?”
The April hearings loom large, with the potential to redraw Rivers State’s political map or plunge it deeper into uncertainty.
