12th December, 2023
…Insists Defected Rivers Lawmakers Automatically Vacated their Seats
By Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately commence the process of conducting fresh elections into the 27 State Constituencies in Rivers State, which, according to it, have become vacant by reason of the defection of the 27 lawmakers elected on the platform of the party to the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).
The PDP made the demand in a press statement by Debo Olungunagba, its National Publicity Secretary, on Monday evening.
The party’s spokesperson asserted that by defecting from the PDP, the political party platform on which they were elected into the Rivers State House of Assembly, the seats of the respective 27 former lawmakers have become vacant by virtue of the provision of Section 109 (1) (g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended).
For the avoidance of doubt, Section 109 (1) of the 1999 Constitution provides that “a member of a House of Assembly shall vacate his seat in the House if … (g) being a person whose election to the House of Assembly was sponsored by a political Party, he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that House was elected…”
It added that by the by reason of the above Constitutional provision and its clear interpretation by the Supreme Court, the 27 defected members of the Rivers State House of Assembly have vacated and lost their seats, rights, privileges, recognition and obligations accruable to members of the Rivers State House of Assembly.
The PDP therefore asked the Speaker of the Rivers State House Assembly immediately comply with the provision of the Constitution by declaring the seats of the 27 former lawmakers vacant.
“In view of the vacancy now exiting in the 27 State Constituencies in Rivers State, the PDP demands that INEC should within the stipulated period under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) conduct fresh election to fill the vacancies.
“Our Party cautions that the former lawmakers should stop parading themselves as members of the Rivers State House of Assembly as such would amount to impersonation with serious criminal consequences”.
“The PDP commends the people of Rivers State for their steadfastness and loyalty to Democracy and Rule of Law especially at this time,” Ologunagba said in the statement.