Rivers crisis: Justice Ahiakwo urges INEC to conduct election for 27 vacant Assembly seats

A Calabar-based lawyer, Justice Osai Ahiakwo, has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to conduct another election for the 27 vacant seats in the Rivers State House of Assembly following the defection of the lawmakers from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the All Progressives Congress, APC, over a week ago.

In an interview, he said the interested party should initiate the proceedings of applying to the electoral body to set aside a date for fresh election in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and electoral laws.

He commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over his intervention to resolve the Rivers crisis as merely applying the alternative dispute-resolution, ADR, mechanisms in persuading the gladiators to sheath their swords.

He said the Presisent took a bold step to mitigate the already-heated political atmosphere in Rivers State.

“Mr. President’s intervention wasn’t in any way contravening the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended),” he said.

Ahiakwo advised the gladiators to withdraw all pending cases in courts of law, saying once this is done, nothing can keep alive the contending issues before the court of law.

Credit: dailypost.ng

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