The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) has announced Saturday, October 5, 2024 as date for local government elections in the State.

Chairman of RSIEC, Justice Adolphus Enebeli announced this on Monday, July 1, 2024 to a cross section of stakeholders at the Commission’s headquarters in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

He equally released the timetable for the elections scheduled to hold across the 23 local government areas of the State and for both chairmanship and councillorship positions.          

The RSIEC boss assured stakeholders of a transparent, credible and peaceful process during the polls.

The tenures of the 23 local government chairmen had elapsed on Monday, June 17, 2024 and Caretaker Committees appointed to administer the local councils pending the conduct of the election that will produce new chief executives for the 23 LGAs.

This puts to the rest the clamour for local council elections in different quarters as well as the furore over an illegal extension of tenures of the erstwhile LGA chairmen by a group of former lawmakers.

Justice Daketima Kio of the Rivers State High Court had on Tuesday, May 21, 2024 voided the purported extension of the tenures of the local government chairmen, declaring it unconstitutional, null and void.

But upon expiration of their tenures, some of the former chairmen attempted to constitute nuisance by insisting on staying in office beyond Monday, June 17, 2024 but were chased away by irate youths who stood watch over the council secretariats.

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) had on the orders of the Inspeector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun asserted security governance over the local council secretariats since then pending the verdict of the Appeal Court on the matter.