Some Youths in the Degema Local Government Area of Rivers state, on Monday, stormed the council headquarters as the local government chairmen in the state have failed to vacate office after the expiration of their tenure.
The LG chairmen in the state under the aegis of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) have vowed to remain in office, citing the Local Government Amendment Law by the Martin Amaewhule-led 27 House of Assembly members empowering them to extend their tenure by six months.
The state ALGON Chairman, Allwell Ihunda, the Chairman of Port Harcourt City Local Government Area, insisted that the law by the House of Assembly empowers them to remain in office.
However, the state Governor, Sim Fubara, warned the LG chairmen to avoid doing anything that would truncate the peace of the state, over the expiration of their tenure in office.
The council chairmen elected during the tenure of the former Governor, Nyesom Wike, have been battling with Fubara following the disagreement between the two political leaders.
According to Punch, the youths in Degema occupied the council secretariat, singing songs and insisting that they would not allow the LG chairmen to remain in office after serving out their tenure or return to the council.
The same scenario reportedly occurred in the Asari-Toru Local Government Area, where youths stormed the council headquarters and occupied the facility.
The youths vowed to remain until Wednesday when work resumes and dared the council chairmen to come to the secretariat.
However, there is a huge security presence in Port Harcourt City Local Government Area and Obio/Akpor LG to prevent security breaches.
The protest is said to have created tension in the state as it will likely spread to other LGs.
Confirming the protest, the spokesperson for the state police command, Grace Iringe-Koko, said the police are on top of the situation, saying, “Our men were on a show of strength this morning. We are still monitoring the situation, and we want to urge everyone to maintain peace in the state.”