By Ibrahim Garba
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has formally written to the Independent National Commission (INEC) tasking them to fill up the vacant positions within the constitutional time frame. This is following the defection of 27 Rivers State law makers to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Monday,
The party made the disclosure on Wednesday after it’s 580th National Working Committee (NWC) according to a statement signed by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Hon. Debo Ologunagba.
The party said that it took the position after a thorough reviewed the state of the Party in Rivers State, particularly with regard to the defection of 25 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly from the PDP, the political platform upon which they were elected into the House, and resolved as follows;
The party reached the following resolutions, “That the Party communicates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) by formally informing the Commission of the vacancies in the Rivers State House of Assembly as a result of the defection of the 25 now former members, who by virtue of Section 109 (1)(g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) vacated their seats by their action.
“That the Party officially demand that INEC should within the Constitutionally stipulated time, conduct fresh election in the 25 State Constituencies in Rivers State where vacancies now exist in the Rivers State House of Assembly as a result of the defection of the 25 now former members.
“Direct the National Legal Adviser to commence appropriate legal action with respect to the declaration of the seats of the 25 defected former members vacant and the conduct of fresh election into the 25 State Constituencies in Rivers State in accordance with the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).
“That the PDP will take every step necessary and available in a democracy to ensure that the votes and mandate of the people of the 25 State Constituencies in Rivers State are protected and not appropriated under any circumstance whatsoever”.
The party argued that the lawmakers automatically lost their mandate immediately they abandoned the party under which they were elected when the party was not in crises nor running a parallel executive.
