Port Harcourt, July 31, 2025 — The Rivers State branch of the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) has rejected the recently announced timetable for the 2025 Local Government Council Elections, describing it as unconstitutional, illegal, and a misuse of public resources.
The revised timetable, released by the newly reconstituted Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RISIEC) on Monday, July 28, fixes the elections for Saturday, August 30, 2025. This move effectively overrides an earlier schedule set by the previous RISIEC under the leadership of Hon. Justice Adolphus Enebeli, which had slated the polls for August 9, 2025.
In a strongly worded statement signed by its spokesperson, Emmanuel Obe, the CLO accused the new RISIEC, led by Dr. Michael Ekpai Odey, of lacking legal and constitutional legitimacy.
“The new RISIEC board was unconstitutionally constituted and, as such, lacks the legitimacy to conduct or reschedule elections. The entire process is unconstitutional, illegal, and a misuse of public funds,” the statement read.
CLO also condemned the electoral timetable as a violation of the Electoral Act, citing statutory provisions—particularly Sections 9(6), 19, and 94—which mandate a minimum of 90 days’ public notice before an election. The revised RISIEC schedule provides only 32 days.
“The timetable fails to meet basic legal requirements, including the mandated notice period. It also omits crucial steps such as the display and verification of the voters’ register, and there is no confirmation that RISIEC has received the voters’ list from INEC,” the CLO noted.
These gaps, according to the civil society group, raise serious concerns about transparency and open the door to electoral malpractice and voter disenfranchisement.
The organisation has demanded an immediate suspension of the proposed elections and a return to constitutional order.
“The urgent rush to conduct these elections ahead of the anticipated return to democratic governance in September 2025—when the suspension of the Governor and State House of Assembly expires—calls the entire process into question,” the CLO said.
CLO further insisted that only a duly constituted democratic government has the authority to oversee such an important civic exercise and vowed to pursue all lawful and democratic means to prevent what it termed “an electoral ambush.”
The group reaffirmed its commitment to defending democratic principles and ensuring that elections in Rivers State are held in accordance with the law.
