The Supreme Court on Friday nullified the October 5, 2024, Local Government Elections conducted in Rivers State, citing non-compliance with electoral laws.
Delivering its verdict in a unanimous decision by a five-member panel led by Justice Uwani Abba-Aji, the apex court upheld the appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) against the conduct of the elections by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC).
In the lead judgment read by Justice Jamilu Tukur, the court ruled that there was no evidence proving that the conditions outlined in Section 150(3) of the Electoral Act, 2010, were fulfilled before the elections were conducted. The Supreme Court, therefore, overturned the November 21, 2024, judgment of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which had validated the election results.
“The failure of RSIEC to adhere to statutory requirements, including publishing the mandatory 90-day notice and ensuring an updated voters’ register, renders the election process fundamentally flawed,” the Supreme Court stated.
The apex court reinstated an earlier ruling by the Federal High Court in Abuja, which had barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from providing the voters’ register to RSIEC for the elections.
It will be recalled that a special panel of the Court of Appeal, led by Justice Onyekachi Otisi, had previously ruled that the high court lacked the jurisdiction to hear the case against the Rivers LG elections. The appellate court also criticized the trial court for preventing security agencies from providing security during the election, arguing that Section 28 of the Electoral Act applied only to federal, governorship, and FCT Area Council elections, not state-conducted local government polls.
Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja had earlier ruled in favor of the APC, halting the conduct of the elections on the grounds that RSIEC had scheduled the polls without following legal procedures. The Supreme Court affirmed his position, holding that RSIEC failed to issue the required 90-day public notice before the elections and complete the update and revision of the voters’ register before setting a date for the polls.
Consequently, the court barred INEC from making the certified voters’ register available to RSIEC until all legal requirements were met. It also prohibited RSIEC from accepting or using any voter register provided by INEC for the purpose of conducting the elections.
