By Suleiman Anyalewechi
No fewer than 12 of those who emerged as the Chairmanship candidates for the forthcoming Rivers State Local Council Election on the platform of the All Progressive Congress, APC, at its primaries held on Saturday August 2, 2025, are of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, extraction.
Following the announcement of August 30 as the date for the conduct of the Poll by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC, political parties have been engaged in the process of selecting their flag bearers since Saturday.
However, findings have shown that the PDP and APC in the State may have resolved to form an alliance, a development which has seen the PDP card carrying members emerge as APC Chairmanship Candidates in such Local Councils as Gokona, Etche, Asari Toru, Ikwerre, Khana, Tai, Degema, Bonny, Oyibo, Omuma, Ogu/Bolo and others.
Instructively, and expectedly too, most of the candidates, both from the ranks of APC and PDP are known political allies and cronies of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory FCT, Nyesom Wike.
Besides, a sizable number of the Candidates are, also, former Local Council Officials, who are largely perceived as Wike’s foot soldiers at the grassroots.
Former Executive Chairman of the Obio/Akpor Local Council, George Ariolu, while justifying the PDP/APC alliance, described it as a normal development in politics.
“It is a normal thing to agree on consensus candidates and even the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria recognizes it.
“It is a matter of understanding. Almost all the political parties have such understanding in their constitutions.
“The consensus option is to tame acrimony and bitterness. When you have consensus as a family ,it brings peace and understanding within the political circle.
“Both PDP and APC came together and agreed on common candidates. Our leader, the Minister of the FCT, is PDP, but he works with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who is a member of the APC. So we have the political understanding and love among ourselves”, Ariolu noted.
However ,the strange political alliance is not without some level of resistance, as some party stalwarts from both divides have been kicking against the development.
The opposition camp, while describing the exercise as a futile effort has also vowed to either frustrate the “unholy alliance” or totally boycott the polls.
The Chief Emeka Beke-led faction of the APC which recently had its request for the national leadership’s recognition as the authentic Executive Committee in the State rejected, has remained adamant about the unconstitutionality of the polls.
In a statement by its spokesperson, Darlington Nwauju, the Beke- led faction insisted that the Rivers State Sole Administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas has no constitutional powers to constitute the State’s Electoral Commission.
According to the factional APC, only a democratically elected Governor of the State has the authority to appoint and inaugurate members of the State’s Electoral body.
This is just as other political groupings, including the ADC, are presently considering boycotting the election.
The spokesperson for the ADC in Rivers State, Chief Luckyman Egila, in an interactive session with the Media, informed that the party will soon meet to take a decision on whether to participate in the election or not.
” In the coming days, critical stakeholders of the ADC will meet to deliberate and share our positions on the forthcoming Local Government polls . That is our position for now”, Egila stated.
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