Court Voids Tenure Extension For LGA Chairmen.

Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has voided the

tenure extension for local Government chairmen in the state.

This was as the court declared Local Government Law No. 2 of

2024, which extended the tenure of local Government chairmen by

6 months after expiration of their tenure, invalid.

The 27 lawmakers in the camp of the Minister of Federal Capital,

Chief Nyesom Wike, had this year, in the face of the crisis,

enacted a law extending the three-year tenure of the serving LGA

chairmen by three months.

However, the court, in its decision Tuesday, held that the new law

was inconsistent with the 1999 constitution and Section 9(1) of

Rivers State Law No. 5 of 2018, which fixed 3 years for local

Government chairmen and councillors.

The court gave the ruling that the recent extension of local

Government chairmen’s tenures was invalid in suit instituted by

Hon. Enyiada Cookey-Gam & 6 Ors vs. The Governor of Rivers

State & Ors.

In his judgment, HHon. Justice D.G. Kio declared that Local

Government Law No. 2 of 2024, which sought to extend the

Chairmen’s terms by six months, conflicts with the 1999

Constitution and Section 9(1) of Rivers State Local Government

Law No. 5 of 2018.

The court affirmed that the lawful tenure for local Government

chairmen and councilors remained three years, as stipulated by

the 2018 law, stressing that any attempt to extend the tenure was

not only unlawful but also violated the officials’ oath of office.