The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may challenge the defection of some of its elected lawmakers in Imo State to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The Speaker of Imo State House of Assembly, Chigi Collins, on Tuesday, led seven other PDP lawmakers to the APC.
About three other PDP lawmakers had earlier joined APC since Senator Hope Uzodinma became governor of the state following the nullification of the election of former governor, Emeka Ihedioha by the Supreme Court.
But PDP said the action of the lawmakers was in breach of section 109 (1) (g) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, at a press conference yesterday, described the defection “as unpatriotic and an unpardonable betrayal of the people of their respective constituencies who chose and identified with the ideal and visions of the PDP as the platform for their representation at the state assembly.”
Ologbondiyan noted that section 109 (1)(g) of the constitution provides that “a member of the House of Assembly shall vacate his seat in the House if, (g) being a person whose election to the House of Assembly by a political party, he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that House was elected.”
He, however, explained that the only condition where such defection is permitted is if there is a division in the political party of which the lawmaker “was previously a member or of a merger of two or more political parties or factions by one of which he was previously sponsored.”
According to him, the defectors have vacated their seats, adding that they no longer have a place in the state assembly; as there is no division or merger of any kind in the PDP at any level whatsoever.
“The PDP holds that these defectors are fully aware of the grave implication of their actions to the effect that by their defection to the APC, they have automatically lost their seats and membership of the Imo State House of Assembly as they can only hold such position on the mandate of the party on which they were elected; the PDP.
“It is settled under the 1999 Constitution (as amended), that a legislator who decamps from a party upon which he was elected a member of a legislative house automatically losses his or her membership of that house as the seat belongs to the political party upon which platform the election was won and not the individual.
“The PDP is, therefore, left with no other option than to request the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately commence the processes for the conduct of fresh elections into the respective state constituencies where the legislators have vacated their seats, in line with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution,” he stated.
