Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has inaugurated a Judicial Commission of Inquiry to investigate the arson, killings and destruction of property at various local council headquarters in the State, in the aftermath of last Saturday’s election and inauguration of new chairmen and councillors for the State’s 23 LGAs.
Inaugurating the seven-member commission at the Executive Chambers of Government House in Port Harcourt on Tuesday (yesterday, October 8), Fubara said the commission, which has Justice Ibiwengi Roseline Minakiri as Chairman; Mrs. Inyingi Brown as the Secretary and Uzor Ikenga as the Counsel, has one month to conclude its assignment.
Other members of the Commission are Felicia Nwoke, Prof. Blessing Didia, Samuel Egbe and Venerable Alex Usifor.
The Governor said the recent attacks and burning of council secretariats on the 7th October, 2024, seemed like a repeat of what was experienced in 2014, months to the general election of 2015 when courts were set ablaze, residences bombed and people killed, leading to the closure of courts in Rivers State.
Fubara said his administration will not look away while misguided youths and sponsored political thugs turn the State into a theatre of violence, without being made to pay for such crimes against the State.
He said: “So, I have decided to take this action to find out the immediate and remote causes of this arson, most importantly, no matter the personalities involved, we must bring them to book.
“So, this assignment is very important. It is an assignment that, if it is not done rightly, would give the enemies of this State opportunity to continue.
“And if we are right, it is going to be the end of further destruction of public property in the State. I know it is going to be very tasking. I can assure you that there will be threats, but you have to be strong.”
The Rivers Chief Executive said that it is long overdue to inaugurate the commission of inquiry owing to incidents that have been witnessed since his administration came on board.
He explained that about October last year, a similar incident was experienced, and because he had thought that everybody was of the same political family, he decided to let go, adding, however, that the persistence of the violence and differences between people who once worked together may well have destroyed chances of settling any misgivings internally.
Governor Fubara emphasised: “It has become very clear that rather than getting close to the path of peace, this State is gradually turning into a kingdom where law and order is no longer the order of the day. And we cannot fold our hands and allow such things to happen.
“On the 5th of October, 2024, about four days ago, we had an election in this State. Before the election, we also heard from a lot of quarters, songs of war, (and) threats but we never took them seriously because we believed that a local government election is a prerogative of the State Government. It has nothing to do with anybody anywhere that is outside the confinement of our State.
“And for that reason, we believed strongly that whatever it is, we could manage it to produce the purpose of that election.”
“But, it is very unfortunate that after the election, even while the election was going on, several things happened, which we managed, thinking it was going to end there,” Fubara lamented.
“The day after the election, there were also more threats from people, and we also thought it was just a normal threat, believing that it was not going to be out of hand but it did.”
The Governor told members of the commission providence which found them worthy to be appointed members of the Commission “has not made any mistake to find them suitable for the assignment given to them”, urging them to work with the mind of actualising the purpose of the assignment, and assuring that history will not forget this responsibility given to them.
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