A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, has carpeted President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for brazenly moving to conduct local government elections in Rivers State under his appointed Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd).
Admiral Ibas was appointed Sole Administrator of Rivers State following the declaration of a state of emergency in the state by President Tinubu on March 18, 2025.
Chief Bode George, a former Deputy National Chairman of the PDP (South), described the plan by President Tinubu as unconstitutional and illegal, stressing that Ibas is not an elected political office holder thus, lacks the legal authority to oversee such an election.
He noted that Tinubu was deliberately undermining Nigeria’s democracy with reckless abandon and executive rascality and recklessness.
George warned that Nigeria’s democracy was sliding towards authoritarianism and therefore urged the Senate to reject Tinubu’s requests for the appointments of commissioners into the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) and other agencies.
He explained that allowing an unelected sole administrator to conduct Local Government elections will be complete disregards of constitutional governance and the will of the people.
Chief George while drawing parallels to past crises in the Western region in the 1960s, further warned that such unconstitutional actions could lead to political instability.
