Officers of the Nigeria Police Force have taken over the premises of 22 Local government councils in Rivers state.

DAILY POST gathered that the police may be acting on a perceived information that some groups who were not favoured by the Federal High Court ruling may invade the council secretariats in protest.

A Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, had ordered the cancellation of the local government elections conducted in Rivers State few days to the expiration of the tenure of former Governor, Rotimi Ameachi’s.

Justice Lambo Akanbi, in his ruling, berated the former administration of Rotimi Amaechi for conducting the local council elections despite his order that all parties should maintain status quo and leave the rest.

Justice Akanbi also accused the immediate past government of “flagrant disobedience of court processes.

In a swift reaction to annulment, the Rivers state House of Assembly, based on a request from Governor, Nyesom Wike immediately screened and confirmed Caretaker Committee members to manage the affairs of the 22 Local councils, all of whom are members of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in the state.

Reports reaching DAILY POST however has it that the police have been drafted to all the council secretariats, stopping the newly sworn-in CTC members and the removed Chairmen from gaining entry into the councils.

Meanwhile, the National leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has requested that the council be reopened.

The party described as “unconstitutional, reprehensible abuse of power and brazen show of partisanship, the action of the APC-
led federal government controlled police in barring caretaker committees lawfully appointed by the state government from taking charge of the councils.”

PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh in a statement on Friday said the action of the police “is an affront to the
ruling of the High Court, which Thursday dissolved the 22 local government councils unlawfully imposed by the immediate past administration in the state, upon which the
caretaker committees were appointed by Governor Nyesom Wike.”

The party said “it was curious that the police allowed the dissolution of local government councils and appointment of caretaker committees in APC controlled
Plateau and Kaduna states, even when they were without the orders of the court but elected to clamp down on that of Rivers State, which came as a result of judicial pronouncement.”

The former ruling party, now opposition party charged the Inspector General of Police to come out clean on the matter and assure Nigerians of the non-partisanship of the Police Force by ordering the immediate unsealing of the councils.

The party said Nigerians and the international community should note the development, which “is a yet another clear indication that the Nigerian police may have
become a partisan and compromised instrument in the hands of the APC federal government to destabilize PDP controlled states,” Metuh said.