Rivers 2023: Residents Brace Up For Violent Governorship Poll

n recent conversations with three key leaders controlling various cult units within Port Harcourt, Obio Akpor and Okrika, all three confirmed that they had been mobilized for the March 18, 2023 Governorship and House of Assembly elections in the state. They however refused to disclose the identity of the politicians that contacted them. When asked to state their specific terms of reference for the elections, one of them casually said ,“Na to spray groundnut na. Anybody wey say him no go gree, go collect.” Groundnut is a slang for ‘bullet,’ and one of the sad characteristics often associated with elections in the state. Speaking further, his counterpart said “Who do any how dat day, we go I.T.T am.” The slangs which means they will deal with potential opponents that stand in their way on election-day, is a major signature of political thugs in the state. . A new election date has been announced by the Independent Electoral Commission INEC and now holds Saturday March 18, 2023. Yet, the threats remain.
The 2023 electoral process has revived the traditional conflict triangles in Rivers State. The state maintains an unenviable record in pre and post-election violence. Between the 2003 and 2019 election cycles, the state recorded unprecedented violence leading to the death of scores of party members and security personnel. While the major flashpoints continue to evolve in each election cycle, the local council areas with the most recent reputation for election violence include Emohua, Eleme, Gokana, Asari Toru, Akuku Toru, Andoni, Ahoada East, Ahoada West, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni, Ikwerre, Khana, Obio Akpor, Opobo/Nkoro, and Port Harcourt.
In 2015, state authorities set up a commission to investigate election related killings between November 2014 and May 2015. Part of the findings by the commission indicated that 19 people were killed monthly in election related violence. At the time of submitting its report the commission noted that 94 persons were killed “between November 15, 2014, and April 11, 2015.”
In 2016 the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was forced to suspend a crucial legislative re-run election after it was marred by violence. The electoral umpire which in a statement described the actions of political thugs as “deviant behaviour,” declared that the election was marred by “fatalities, kidnappings, [and] ballot snatching.” The election claimed the lives of four soldiers and a youth corps member who served as an adhoc staff. A similar tide was also recorded during the 2019 electoral process with the state recording six deaths including a Nigerian army lieutenant.
The most prominent conflict driver in Rivers State is cultism. Cultism however shares a nexus with other prominent crimes in the state. These crimes include drug abuse, sea robbery, kidnapping, pipeline vandalism, and sexual gender based violence (SGBV). Cultism in the state is generally facilitated by frictional and structural unemployment, rural and urban poverty, lack of inclusive and equitable distribution of wealth, and the easy availability of firearms occasioned by the illegal crude oil trade.
Some of the most prominent cult groups in the state include Icelanders, Degbam, Greenlanders, Baggars. The groups control the streets and are highly patronized by politicians. Each of the groups control and maintain significant strong- holds and are given mandates by politicians to ensure that they win the political units and wards within their strongholds during elections. Part of the incentives for winning the strongholds includes political representation at both local government and state assembly level. To win the units and wards, each of the groups deploy significant volume of violence which includes voter harassment, suppression, intimidation and maiming and killing where and when necessary.
A taste of what to expect during the governorship and state assembly election was witnessed in the build-up to the presidential and National Assembly elections. The state grabbed negative headlines with targeted attacks against political opponents by cultists who also act as political thugs. In many instances, they violently disrupted opposition party campaigns and orchestrated clear threats to life. For instance, National Point had earlier reported how the Rivers State Government enacted two ‘executive orders’ which mandated political parties in the state to seek approval from the state government before they can hold political rallies in the state. The executive orders which are known as ‘orders 21 and 22,’ also mandate political parties to relocate their campaign offices from residential areas. In most cases, the orders were enforced by known cultists who act in the company of LGA Chairmen in the various local government areas.
Some of the worst politically motivated attacks within the period took place in Opobo/Nkoro local government area, the LGA of the governorship candidate of the ruling party in the state, the People’s Democratic Party PDP, Siminalayi Fubara. In addition to the threats from the implementation of the executive orders, there were also targeted attacks against opposition politicians and their assets. For instance on February 22, 2023, Wish 99.5 FM, a radio station owned by the lawmaker representing Port Harcourt Federal Constituency 2, Hon Chinyere Igwe, was bombed by suspected political thugs. Igwe, a former ally of the state governor, is one of the supporters of the presidential candidate of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. In a similar attack, the residence of Hon. Charles Anyanwu, the Rivers State House of Assembly candidate for Etche Constituency was bombed two days to the February 25, presidential and national assembly elections.
The attacks continued unabated with the bombing of the residences of Chief Glory Emeh and Dr. Tamunosisi Gogo Jaja who are also supporters of the presidential candidate of the main opposition PDP on February 24, 2023. Perhaps the most notable assassination attempt was that of the Director General of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council (PDP-PCC), Rivers State, Dr Abiye Sekibo on February 10, 2023. Dr Sekibo’s vehicle was riddled with gun bullets while the venue for the proposed PDP rally he went to inspect was set ablaze by political thugs.
The attacks eventually peaked with the brazen disruption of voting in several polling units by political thugs in company of serving officials of the Rivers State Government. In many parts of Obio/Akpor, Oyigbo, Ikwerre, Eleme, Khana, and Port Harcourt, LGAs, voting was truncated by thugs while security agents watched helplessly. The disruption was in the form of hijack of ballot boxes, destruction of ballot papers and voter intimidation.
The disruption further led to a violent protest by youths who insisted that the electoral umpire must recover stolen result sheets and upload them to the INEC result viewing portal (IREV) or declare a re-run in polling units where voting was disrupted. The protest was also characterised by blockade of INEC offices including the vandalization of properties in Elele and Port Harcourt.
A conflict mapping and early warning and early response mechanisms (EWER) deployed at traditional flashpoints indicate that the governorship election may be marred by violence. Key indicators include increase in drug supply in and around drug joints within the streets of Port Harcourt and Obio/Akpor, sporadic gunshots from February 28 and March 3, within and around hotspots in Old Port Harcourt Township, and reports of massive migration of strange young men into communities in Emohua, Obio/Akpor, Khana, Gokhana, Opobo/Nkoro, Port Harcourt, Oyigbo, Asari Toru, Akuku Toru, Ahoada West, Ikwerre and Omoku.
Key actors informed this publication that the shootings in the last few days represent a realignment of conflict actors in preparation towards the governorship election in the state. They explained that during the presidential and national assembly election, many cultist and ex-militants worked for the state government. They however noted that some of the key actors who worked for the state government have however realigned themselves with other governorship candidates.
Giving reasons for the realignment, they said that while some of the key actors are motivated by the inducement of higher financial gains, others are motivated by longer term interests such as political appointments, contracts and ethnic considerations. Most of the frontline candidates are Rivers Ijaws while others are from the Ogoni axis from which some of the governorship candidates hail.
Corroborating the information, a prominent critic of the state government who is also a prominent Chief in the state, noted that the information available to him indicates that the March 18,2023 governorship election will be marred by violence. He however insisted that the Rivers state governor should be held responsible for whatever happens in the state on election-day.
The source who pleaded anonymity, said “We are preparing for eventuality…did you see what the governor did during the last election? He has decided to throw the state into chaos with his actions and utterances. I have my fears that others may have also prepared to play the same music for him to dance.”
Expressing concern over the volatile situation, the Civil Liberties Organization (CLO) in the state has called on the Rivers State police command to provide adequate security during and after the governorship elections. In a statement released on March 2, 2023, the CLO which lamented that “political thugs operated unhindered during the presidential and national assembly elections,” further accused the police command of doing little or nothing to protect the electoral process.
In 2003, during the build-up to the presidential election, violence between rival militia groups brought the state to global spotlight. Rival groups led by Asari Dokubo and Ateke Tom, now a traditional ruler in Okochiri, Okrika, Local Government Area, aided by funded by politicians, engaged, in an unprecedented blood bath that claimed the lives of many young people. The violence which stemmed from the condemnation of the outcome of the 2003 presidential election by Asari eventually escalated into a major political and economic instability that also affected the global price of oil. Since then, the trend has continued with notable assassination of notable personalities who were prominent political figures in the state.
Notable politicians assassinated in the state from 2003 to the present, include late Chief Marshall Harry, Chief Aminasoari Dikibo, Chief Gospel Biobele, Chief Christopher Adube, Mr Franklin Obi, and Deputy Superintendent of Police, Alkali Mohammed and Barrister Ken Asuwete. This is in addition to other deaths recorded on election-days including security personnel.
While Chief Marshal Harry was killed on March 5, 2003, in his home in Abuja,,Chief A.K Dikibo was murdered on February 6, 2004 and his dead body found in his Black jeep off the Ughelli-Asaba road in Delta State. The whereabouts of his driver remain a subject of intense speculation 19 years after he was murdered.
Until their deaths, both Marshall Harry and A.K Dikibo were the National Vice-Chairmen (South-South) of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) respectively. Chief Gospel Biobele on his part was killed in his house after he allegedly wrote a petition against the nomination for appointment of Dr Abiye Sekibo as a federal Minister.
Although the Rivers State government under Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, eventually set up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission headed by a respected Judge, Justice Kayode Eso in 2008 to address the latent causes of crisis in the state and attempt to assuage the pain of victims and their families, most of the recommendations from the commission were not implemented. Notable findings from oral evidence presented during the Commissions sitting however indicted top politicians as major sponsors of cultism, violent conflict and killings in the state.