Former Chairmen of Local Government Councils in Rivers State have vowed that they would resume office if Governor Siminalayi Fubara fails to obey the recent Supreme Court judgment outlawing the use of Caretaker Committees to administer the affairs of the Councils.
The former chairmen believed to be loyal to the former governor of the State and currently the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, stated their position at a media briefing in Port Harcourt on Friday.
Leader of the former Local Government Chairman, Dr Chidi Lloyd, who was chairman of Emohua Local Government Council, said they had remained silent and patient all these while on the premise that Governor Fubara will comply with the Supreme Court judgement, saying however, that the Governor had continue to work with Caretaker Committee in the 23 Local Government Councils in the state.
Lloyd said that Fubara’s actions were capable of causing a breach of the peace in the state and therefore called on the police authority at the national level to take necessary actions to stop the activities of Fubara’s Caretaker Committee chairmen.
Lloyd said; “The Governor of Rivers State has continued to act as if the state is parallel. We are not cowards. If this continues, we will go back to our Local Government Councils and force ourselves into office.
“We have kept quiet because of the kind of leader we have who continues from time to time to preach the path of peace. We are still the same ones that elected him into office as governor when his Local Government produced less than 5000 votes.
“If this continues, we will exacerbate the already exacerbated situation,” he warned.
The secretariats of the 23 Local Government Councils are presently under the control of the Police command in Rivers State.
Following the crisis that erupted over the tenure of the former chairmen of the 23 Local Government Councils, the Inspector General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, directed the State commissioner of police to takeover and occupy the councils pending the determination of the case before the court.
