The Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Ibok-Ete Ibas, has officially announced the appointment of Michael Odey as the new Chairman of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC).
This announcement was made public in a Special Government Announcement released on Wednesday morning by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Ibibia Worika.
In addition to appointing the new chairman, Ibas has also selected individuals to serve as members of the electoral commission. The full list of the newly appointed RSIEC members includes:
- Dr. Michael Ekpai Odey – Chairman
- Mr. Lezaasi Lenee Torbira – Member
- Professor (Dr.) Arthur Nwafor – Member
- Professor Godfrey Woke Mbgudiogha – Member
- Professor (Dame) Joyce Akaninwor – Member
- Dr. (Mrs.) Olive A. Bruce – Member
- Professor Chidi Halliday – Member
In a related development, the Sole Administrator had earlier approved the appointment of administrators for the 23 Local Government Areas of Rivers State. This decision comes despite a court order issued by the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt on Tuesday, which reportedly restrained Ibas from appointing administrators to oversee the local government councils. Justice Adam Muhammed issued the restraining order in case no. FHC/PH/CS/46/2025, filed by the PILEX Centre for Civic Education Initiative, led by Courage Msirimovu.
Even though the court’s ruling prohibited the appointment of local government administrators, Ibas proceeded to approve the constitution of several boards for various state agencies, commissions, and parastatals, which had previously been suspended. The approval for these boards, like the RSIEC appointments, was detailed in a government announcement issued on Wednesday by Prof. Worika.
