The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has issued warning to the All Progressives Congress (APC) to desist from its alleged manipulative plots to forcefully take over the government of Rivers State.
This warning comes in a statement issued by Debo Ologunagba, the PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, on Saturday, News About Nigeria reports.
The PDP claims that the APC’s recent statement on the ongoing political crisis in the state has further exposed its hallucinating and manipulative plots.
The party accused the APC of attempting to subvert the Constitution and manipulate the political process in the state.
Ologunagba stated that the APC’s efforts to reverse the vacation of seats by former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly who defected from the party are unconstitutional and will not succeed.
The PDP spokesperson said that the former lawmakers have lost their seats according to Section 109 (1) (g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), which states that a member of a House of Assembly shall vacate their seat if they become a member of another political party before the expiration of their term.
Ologunagba further stated that the APC should come to terms with the vacation of seats by the former lawmakers and stop attempting to reverse the irreversible.
He warned the APC to steer clear of Rivers State and perish any thoughts of forcefully taking over the state, as the quorum of the Rivers State House of Assembly will be determined by the number of remaining lawmakers as provided by law.
The PDP’s statement partly read: “For the avoidance of doubt, Section 109 (1)(g) of the Constitution is clear in providing that a member of a House of Assembly shall vacate his seat in the House if – 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.”
This development comes after a recent face-off between Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State and lawmakers loyal to Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, which led to the deployment of policemen at the House of Assembly quarters located along Aba Road, Port Harcourt.
The police took over the place shortly after the Speaker of the House, Martins Amaewhule, accused Fubara of planning to demolish the legislative quarters. The governor had paid an unannounced visit to the facility on Thursday afternoon, explaining that he was there to access the place following the emergence of a new speaker.
