The Legal Adviser of the Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) Rivers State Chapter and Chairman of Andoni LGA, Irastus Awoto, has declared that the democratically elected local government chairmen will not vacate their offices at the scheduled end of their tenures in June, citing legal provisions for an additional six-month stay.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Awoto emphasized that the absence of scheduled local government elections has prompted the need for this extension.
“Our tenure was originally set to expire in June 2024. However, the Assembly has recognized that no actions have been taken to conduct subsequent elections and, wisely, they’ve decided to prevent a governance vacuum,” he explained.
According to him, this decision is backed by the local government law, which mandates that current chairmen remain in office until new elections are conducted.
This announcement comes amid concerns that the state government has been lax in its duties to organize timely local government elections.
“We even went to court over this issue because there has been no significant attention from the state government regarding the local government elections,” Awoto added, highlighting the legal steps taken by the chairmen to secure their positions amid growing political tension.
Further complicating the situation are claims from associates of the governor, allegedly threatening to forcibly remove the chairmen from their offices come mid-June.
Awoto described these threats as “an invitation to anarchy,” underscoring the potential for unrest if such actions were to proceed without adherence to legal protocols.
The Rivers State House of Assembly has amended the local government law, granting an additional six months in office to the current chairmen in the absence of elections.
“This law amendment is what we are relying on to continue our duties legally and ensure stability in our local administrations,” Awoto stated.
Already, the Rivers State governor has barred all heads and officials of the 23 local government areas in the state from appearing before the Rivers Assembly, especially the lawmakers loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
 Rivers State Chapter and Chairman of Andoni LGA, Irastus Awoto, has declared that the democratically elected local government chairmen will not vacate their offices at the scheduled end of their tenures in June, citing legal provisions for an additional six-month stay.){kind=link}