The Rivers State House of Assembly has issued an arrest order for the Chairman of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), Justice Adolphus Enebeli (rtd), due to his noncompliance with a summons to appear before the legislators.
The arrest order was given on Monday during a plenary session following the expiration of a 72-hour deadline that had been set for Enebeli.
The lawmakers had extended the original 48-hour deadline to 72 hours to provide the RSIEC leader the opportunity to come before the Assembly and address inquiries regarding the circumstances surrounding the annulled local government elections of October 2024.
Enebeli was anticipated to attend along with other RSIEC commissioners but ultimately did not show up.
In response, the RSIEC chairman and his commissioners have filed a lawsuit at the State High Court contesting the decisions made by the legislators.
Earlier, a member of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), Ibierembo Evelyn Thompson, announced her resignation from the electoral body.
Thompson’s resignation marks the third from the RSIEC, following a 48-hour ultimatum issued by the Rivers State House of Assembly to the commission’s chairman, Justice Adolphus Enebeli (retired), to appear before the legislative body last week.
She referenced the recent Supreme Court ruling concerning the local government elections scheduled for October 5, 2024, in the state.
After the initial deadline lapsed on Friday, the Assembly granted an additional 72-hour extension for the chairman and his commissioners to clarify the election funding sources.
The Supreme Court had previously determined that the election was conducted contravening the Electoral Act and other pertinent regulations.
In anticipation of a potential bench warrant from the House of Assembly, led by Martin Amaewhule, two other commissioners, Lazberry Nnah and Professor Simeon Weli, had resigned earlier, citing the Supreme Court ruling invalidating the election.
