Rivers State Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.), has approved the appointment of administrators for the 23 Local Government Areas of the state.
INFORMATION NIGERIA reports that the appointments take effect from Monday, April 7, 2025.
The announcement was made in a statement on Wednesday by Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Ibibia Worika.
The development is coming, amid legal and political tensions in the state, with a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt having earlier barred Ibas from making such appointments.
Justice Adamu Turaki Mohammed issued an interim injunction in Suit No. FHC/PH/CS/46/2025, filed by PILEX Centre for Civic Education Initiative led by Courage Msirimovu.
The order restrains the Sole Administrator and his agents from appointing sole administrators, under any designation to oversee the LGAs.
The court granted the motion ex parte filed on March 28, and has fixed April 14 for a substantive hearing.
Governor Siminalayi Fubara, who succeeded Wike, had dissolved the councils and appointed caretaker chairmen, triggering a fierce contest for control of the local government structures, widely regarded as critical to grassroots political dominance.
READ MORE: Emergency Rule: Sole Administrator Suspends All Political Appointees In Rivers
The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) went on to conduct local government elections on October 5, 2024. However, the Wike-aligned faction of the All Progressives Congress (APC), led by Tony Okocha, challenged the process in court. Despite the litigation, the elections proceeded.
Following a Supreme Court ruling on February 28, 2025, which sided with the Wike-backed APC, Governor Fubara nullified the results and directed heads of local council administrations to assume control until fresh elections are held.
This move further escalated the crisis, prompting legal threats and political backlash from the Wike camp.
The post Ibas Ignores Court Rulling, Appoints 23 Administrators For Rivers Local Govts appeared first on Information Nigeria.
