Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters in Abuja, the acting national chairman of the PDP, Umar Damagum, asked the “former lawmakers” not to be deceived by those in Abuja, insisting that they had willingly vacated their seats.
Damagum noted that the right thing for the 27 lawmakers, who defected to the APC, to do was to prepare for fresh elections under any political party they want as the PDP had already written to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prepare for fresh polls in their constituencies.
The acting chairman, flanked by other members of the National Working Committee (NWC) said, “That INEC should, in line with Section 109 (1) (g) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and Section 84 (15) of the Electoral Act, 2022, fix a date for the conduct of fresh election into the state constituencies in Rivers State where vacancies have occurred by reason of the defection of the now former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, pending the determination of any suit in any court.”
He said: “Our party insists that having now vacated and lost their seats, the only option available for the former lawmakers, if they wish to return to the House of Assembly, is to seek fresh nomination and re-election on the platform of any political party of their choice in line with the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and the Electoral Act, 2022.
“For the avoidance of doubt, there is no division in the PDP at the national or any other level for that matter to justify the defection of the 27 former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly from the Party. They, therefore, vacated their seats for reasons best known to them and cannot return to the House of Assembly without passing through a fresh electoral process in accordance with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and the Electoral Act, 2022.
“Moreover, the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly Rt. Hon (Barr) Ehie O. Edison DSSRS officially declared the seats of the defected now former members vacant in line with Section 109 (1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended). The Rivers State House of Assembly, having become Functus Officio on the matter, cannot re-admit the former lawmakers unless through the channel of a fresh election.
Our party, therefore, counsels the former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly not to be deceived by anybody giving them the false hope and impracticable assurances in Abuja that they can return to the Rivers State House of Assembly without a fresh election or that the INEC can be stopped from conducting fresh election into the 27 Rivers State Constituencies where vacancies have occurred by reason of their defection.”
