Rivers PDP Urges INEC To Conduct New Election In 27 Constituencies 

Rivers PDP Urges INEC To Conduct New Election In 27 Constituencies 

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is urging the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to initiate the process of organizing new elections in the 27 constituencies of Rivers State.

These vacancies were created as a result of the defection of the members of the Rivers State House of Assembly from the PDP to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The PDP argues that the seats of the 27 lawmakers who defected have become vacant in accordance with Section 109 (1) (g) of the Nigerian Constitution.

This section stipulates that a legislator’s seat becomes vacant if they defect from the political party on whose platform they were elected.

The party’s national publicity secretary, Debo Ologunagba, emphasized the need for the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly to promptly adhere to the constitutional provisions by declaring the seats of the 27 former lawmakers as vacant.

This would pave the way for the required by-elections to be conducted in those constituencies.

“The Speakers of the Rivers State House of Assembly should immediately comply with the provisions of the Constitution by declaring the seats of the 27 former lawmakers vacant.”

A statement by Ologunagba added that: “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.

“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.

“In view of the vacancy now existing in the 27 state constituencies in Rivers State, the PDP demands that INEC, within the stipulated period under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), conduct a 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.”