Rivers LG election shows Fubara has no integrity, says DHRD

By Mark Lenu

An advocacy group, the Defence For Human Rights And Democracy (DHRD) says the just concluded LG election in Rivers State had shown that Governor Siminalayi Fubara does not have integrity.

The group said there was no election in the state on October 5, adding that the winners of the election were already predetermined by the governor and that what took place was selection not election.

The Chairman, DHRD, Comrade Clifford Solomon told our correspondent that the integrity of the governor was put to test and the way he allowed the election to be conducted showed he does not have integrity.

“This election has shown that Fubara is not different from the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike. We expected Fubara to use the LG election to prove that he is not a conventional politician like Wike but he failed.

“There were no election result sheets at the polling units. Out of the over 1000 eligible voters in the election, only 200 ballot papers were brought for the election.

“The candidates that RSIEC declared winners of the election were the names the governor approved and sent to RSIEC,” the group alleged.

DHRD further advocated for the immediate replacement of the state electoral body with a national electoral body, insisting that the LG election will never be free and fair if state electoral umpires are allowed to conduct the LG election.

The October 5 LG election was the first to be conducted in the state under the watch of Fubara as governor since he took over Brick House on May 29, 2023.

Some candidates of the election had also complained about the non-availability of result sheets during the election, describing the election as a fraud on the electorate.

However, the winners of the election were sworn in as chairmen and councilors and assumed duties in their respective local government areas.

The newly deployed Commissioner of Police in the state, Mustapha Muhammed had visited the council secretariats that were razed as a result of the election to carry out an on-the-spot assessment.