WIKE’S EXECUTIVE ORDERS ARE BEING CONTESTED IN COURT BY THE APC

The Rivers State government’s Executive Orders 21 and 22, which set limitations on political party activity in the state, have been contested in court by the All Progressives Congress (APC) there.

The Executive Order 21 was recently signed by Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, which forbids political parties from utilizing public schools for campaigns without Ministry of Education approval and payment of a non-refundable fee of N5 million.

The ruling also states that two weeks prior to the event, parties must write the commissioner of education to obtain permission to hold a campaign rally at a public school.

Political parties were forbidden from using structures in residential areas as campaign offices under Wike’s Executive Order 22.

However, Sogbeye Eli, a spokesman for the APC Campaign Council in the state, told journalists yesterday in Port Harcourt that following the instructions would be the same as admitting illegality.

Eli declared: “Our party won’t approach anyone about using public spaces for marketing. That will be the same as identifying irregularity. We’ve already filed a lawsuit against Executive Orders 21 and 22 with the court. Let the court make that decision.

He claimed that the PDP’s attempts to be the only political party represented on the general election ballot as a result of the Court of Appeal’s ruling overturning the Federal High Court’s decision excluding APC candidates from the 2023 general elections had failed.