Governorship candidates from several political parties in Rivers State stormed the state police headquarters on Friday, protesting what they described as intimidation by Governor Nyesom Wike ahead of Saturday’s election. The demonstrators included Senator Magnus Abe of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Tonye Cole of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Dumo Lulu‑Briggs of Accord, and Tonte Ibraye of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Abe criticized Governor Wike’s directive to security agencies to arrest and prosecute certain politicians on the grounds of plotting to disrupt the elections, arguing that the governor lacks the authority to do so. He noted that many of those named in the governor’s broadcast are simply campaigners for other parties, including several SDP members and a Nigerian citizen who flew into the country to vote. “Because he put up billboards for the SDP and mobilised voters to come out for the SDP, his name has been included as somebody who is to be apprehended and arrested,” Abe said, adding that it is the police’s responsibility to declare anyone wanted.
APC candidate Cole described the protest as a multi‑party decision, asserting that opposition parties have been victimised, intimidated, and have had members arrested. Accord candidate Lulu‑Briggs emphasized that the concern extends beyond the candidates themselves, noting that the electorate in the state is also anxious. “We want to ask the police to make sure that people have confidence in the system,” he said.
In response, state Commissioner for Information and Communications Chris Finebone dismissed the allegations, stating that neither the governor nor the ruling PDP would engage in such despicable conduct.
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