In a new development in the ongoing Rivers State political crisis, the Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas (rtd), has directed the Heads of Local Government Administration (HLGAs) across the state’s 23 local government areas to submit detailed reports on the operations of their respective councils.
The directive, issued via a letter dated March 24, 2025, and signed by Itong Awani, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Local Government Affairs, mandates the HLGAs—appointed under suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara—to submit their reports to the ministry by Wednesday, March 26, 2025.
According to the letter obtained by The New Daily Prime, the requested reports are to include:
Core functions of each council, current nominal staff roll, sources of internally generated revenue and other administrative activities
The purpose behind this audit-like directive remains unclear. However, sources within government circles suggest that it may signal the beginning of efforts to suspend or replace current local government chairmen—a move that has drawn sharp criticism from legal experts and civil society.
This directive comes against the backdrop of salary unrest in the state. As of March 2025, local government workers were owed two months’ salaries due to the withholding of federal allocations, following the Supreme Court’s February 2025 judgment nullifying the October 2024 LGA elections.
Although federal allocations have since been released and payments resumed under Ibas’s leadership, concerns are growing over what appears to be a strategic effort to disempower elected council chairmen.
Legal Experts Question Constitutionality
Legal practitioners have condemned any attempt by the sole administrator to replace or sideline democratically elected officials. Citing Section 7 of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, experts argue that only elected representatives have the legal mandate to govern at the local government level.
“No individual, including a sole administrator, has the constitutional power to manage local governments without an electoral mandate,” said a senior legal analyst. “The Constitution is clear on this. Local governments must be run by democratically elected councils, and not by appointees of the state or federal government.”
As tension continues to rise, political observers and rights groups are calling on the federal government to tread carefully, warning that any unconstitutional actions could further destabilize governance and erode democratic principles in Rivers State.
