Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has joined other stakeholders in condemning the planned Local Government (LG) election in Rivers State.

Atiku, in a statement on his official X account on Saturday, said conducting the council elections in Rivers State will have implications for the rest of Nigeria.

“It is in one’s interest to help put out the fire in your neighbour’s house to safeguard against your house being torched,” the former VP wrote.

“I agree that what is playing out in Rivers State, with an illegal sole administrator, unknown to our constitution, conducting council elections, has implications for the rest of the country. I join other men and women of goodwill to condemn this absurdity unequivocally.”

Meanwhile, ahead of the Local Government election in Rivers State, stakeholders have warned against violating Nigeria’s Constitution.

The stakeholders, led by investment banker Atedo Peterside, in a statement on Friday, said the proposed LG election is nothing short of an existential assault on democracy and a brazen flouting of Nigeria’s Constitution.

“We, the undersigned stakeholders and advocates for democratic principles in Rivers State, express deep concern over the violation of constitutional governance and due process in the unlawful attempt to hold Local Government election in the state,” the statement read in part.

“This election, orchestrated by a ‘Sole Administrator’ with no constitutional mandate and allegedly imposed by the Federal Government, threatens the very foundations of a federal system, the rule of law, and the peace of Rivers State.”

The stakeholders said firstly, there is currently no legally constituted Rivers State Electoral Commission (RSIEC) as mandated by Sections 2.3, 5 and 12 of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission Law, 2018, adding that any electoral activities undertaken by such an illegitimate body are null and void.

According to the statement, the combined interpretation of the specified sections of the RSIEC Law alongside Section 7(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) establishes that only the elected Governor, upon confirmation by the Rivers State House of Assembly, is empowered to appoint the Chairman and members of RSIEC.

Secondly, the stakeholders stated that the illegitimate RSIEC has flagrantly ignored the mandatory 90-day notice requirement prior to an election, as stipulated in Section 20 of the RSIEC Law.

“With no formal notification for candidate nominations or polling timetables—and an election date of August 30, 2025, announced on short notice—ths process bears a resemblance to the 2024 whichh the Supreme Court annulled due to procedural failures,” the statement added.

The stakeholders warned that ignoring these safeguards is not an oversight: it is a deliberate attack on the principle of due process. (The Guardian)