A Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has fixed January 23, 2026, to deliver judgment in a suit filed by a civil society organization, Initiative for Freedom, Conflict Prevention and Social Integration, challenging the conduct of the last local government elections in Rivers State.
The group is contesting the appointment of the Chairman and members of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC, by the then Sole Administrator of the state, Retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas.
It also argues that President Bola Tinubu lacks the constitutional powers to amend the electoral laws under which the RSIEC officials conducted the LGA elections that produced the current local government chairmen, vice chairmen and councillors.
When the matter came up in court on Friday, counsel to all parties adopted their final written addresses, after which the presiding judge, Justice Muhammad Turaki, adjourned the case to January 23 for judgment.
Speaking to journalists after the sitting, counsel to the plaintiff, Amegua Lezina, reiterated the organization’s position on the legality of President Tinubu’s actions regarding the conduct of the elections, insisting that “no individual can put something on nothing and expect it to stand.”
In a separate suit, the Initiative for Freedom, Conflict Prevention and Social Integration is also challenging the legality of the National Assembly’s ratification of the appointment of the former Sole Administrator of Rivers State, retired Vice Admiral Ibas.
The group is questioning the authority of the National Assembly to set up a committee to oversee emergency rule in Rivers State, as well as its powers to receive the state’s 2025 budget.
Other defendants in the suit, which has also been adjourned to January 23 for judgment include Ibas, the Attorney General of the Federation, and the National Assembly.