JUST IN: Appeal Court Strikes Out Case on Rivers LG Chairmen Tenure Elongation

Court of Appeal sitting in Port Harcourt has delivered a crucial ruling on the appeal seeking to overturn the verdict of the Rivers State High Court regarding the tenure elongation for former local government area (LGA) chairmen. In its decision, the Appeal Court struck out the appeal, citing a lack of merit.

The court’s ruling upholds the earlier decision by the Rivers State High Court, which declared the tenure elongation act of the Amended Local Government Law, enacted by the Rt. Hon. Martin Amaewhule-led Rivers Assembly, as illegal and invalid.

The cases in question included:

Case No. CA/PH/137M/2024: Hon. Enyiada Cookey-Gam & 6 ORS vs. Governor of Rivers State & ORS

Case No. CA/PH/145M/2024: Hon. Enyiada Cookey-Gam & 6 ORS vs. Governor of Rivers State & ORS

These appeals were filed by seven LGA chairmen against Governor Siminalayi Fubara, requesting the Appeal Court to overturn the Rivers State High Court’s verdict. However, the Appeal Court’s decision to strike out the appeal confirms that there will be no elongation of the tenure of Local Government Chairmen in Rivers State.

With this ruling, the path is now clear for the police to vacate the LGA council secretariat, allowing for the proper takeover by the Caretaker Committee (C.T.C) chairmen.