The modified Local Government Law, which was suggested by the Martins Amaewhule group of the Rivers State House of Assembly, has been declared illegal by the Rivers State High Court.
The verdict was made in a lawsuit with the case number PHC/1320/CS/2024, which contested the tenure extension granted to LG chairman for a period of six months following the end of their terms.
Citing the amendment’s contradiction with Section 9(1) of the Rivers State Local Government Code No. 5 of 2018 and the 1999 Constitution, Justice D.G. Kio, who was presiding over the matter, pronounced it illegal.
The Rivers State Local Government Law No. 5 of 2018, which specifies a three-year tenure, is the applicable law that governs the term of local government chairmen and council members, the court noted.
It was determined that their attempt to prolong their term of office by passing Local Government Law No. 2 of 2024 was illegal and went against their oath of office.
Enyiada Cookey-Gam and the other six individuals who contested the extension and argued that constitutional principles should take precedence over other laws have won their case with this verdict.
