The Supreme Court of Nigeria on Friday ruled that the local government election conducted in Rivers State on October 5 last year, which was won by the All People’s Party (APP), was invalid, illegal, null and void.
The apex court held that the election was flawed because the Rivers State Electoral Commission failed to meet all necessary legal conditions before conducting the poll.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Jamilu Tukur stated that the election violated Section 150 of the Electoral Act 2022.
Prior to the election, on September 30, 2024, the Federal High Court in Abuja had barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from releasing the voter register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) for the election.
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Additionally, the court prohibited the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Department of State Services (DSS) from providing security for the election.
Justice Peter Lifu, in his ruling on a suit filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and argued by senior lawyers Joseph Daudu, Sebastine, and Ogwu James Onoja (all SANs), declared that RSIEC wrongly scheduled the October 5 election without complying with the required electoral laws.
He noted that RSIEC failed to issue the mandatory 90-day notice before fixing the election date, violating local government election laws.
Furthermore, Justice Lifu ruled that voter register updates and revisions must be completed before an election date can be legally set. As a result, he ordered INEC not to release the certified voter register to RSIEC until all legal requirements were met.
RSIEC was also barred from accepting or using any voter register for the October 5 election.
Emmanuel Ukoh
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