Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has suspended Otonye Briggs, the Chairman of the Caretaker Committee for Akuku-Toru Local Government Area. The suspension was announced on Tuesday in a statement by Nelson Chukwudi, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Briggs’ suspension is effective immediately, though no specific reason was provided. Governor Fubara has directed Bitebobo Amiee to take over as the new chairperson. Briggs has also been instructed to hand over all council property in his possession to Amiee.
The suspension comes just three months after the inauguration of caretaker committee chairpersons for Rivers State’s 23 local government areas, following the expiration of the three-year tenure of the former elected council officials.
Tensions have been high between supporters of Governor Fubara and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, now the FCT Minister. Violence erupted earlier when former local government chairmen, backed by Wike, refused to vacate office, leading to clashes that resulted in the deaths of two people, including a police officer.
In response, police forces were deployed to secure all 23 council secretariats, where Briggs has not been able to operate from his official office since.
