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Eleme LG Council Secretariat Set Ablaze After Explosive Rivers Election

Published

2 months ago

Oct 7, 2024.

A section of the Eleme Local Government Council secretariat in Rivers State has been set ablaze, sparking tensions just days after the controversial local government elections in which the Action Peoples Party (APP) secured the majority of seats.

Reports from Channels TV indicate that the newly elected Eleme LG Chairman, Brian Gokpa, arrived at the council secretariat with his councillors and supporters, only to find several buildings engulfed in flames.

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that

The incident has heightened concerns about possible violence across other state councils following the contentious Saturday elections.

As of now, the police have yet to issue an official statement regarding the arson.

Eleme Council Secretariat

Meanwhile, the Rivers State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) loyal to the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, has rejected the outcome of the local government election.

They described the poll as an exercise in futility, vowing to challenge it in court.

Recall that the Saturday council election was won by the Action Peoples Party (APP), which secured 22 out of 23 chairmanship positions, while the Action Alliance candidate won one seat.

The APP also won 314 out of the 319 councillorship seats in the 23 LGAs in the state.

Fubara subsequently swore in the newly elected council chairmen of the 23 local government areas of the state on Sunday.

This online media platform understands that after losing control of the PDP to Wike, Fubara’s supporters switched to the APP.

Speaking on the poll, the state Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Kenneth Yowika, said the party would challenge the election in court.