Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, on Wednesday, ordered the audit of the accounts of the 23 Local Government Areas for the past three years.
Fubara directed the Auditor General of the state to carry out the task while swearing in the Caretaker Committee Chairmen of the local councils at the Executive Council Chamber of the Government House in Port Harcourt, the state capital.
According to him, the audit of the accounts is intended to serve as a check for the incoming chairmen and make the local councils more accountable.
The Governor urged the caretaker chairmen to protect the interests of their people, rather than seeing themselves as superheroes and prove the government right in appointing them.
But the Governor warned that their tenure would not be excessively long, because the process for local government area elections would commence soon.
He also ordered a probe of the tenures of the outgoing local government chairmen, saying that the current events in the state are a product of democracy.
Fubara warned against violence, stating that it is not his approach, urging the officials to sort out the salaries and entitlements of the outgoing chairmen.
The Governor noted that the fight against tenure extension is not just about the state, but the entire country, as allowing it in one state could lead to it being replicated nationwide.
He said Rivers State was not doing anything unusual, as most states in the country are also run by caretaker committees.
