L
LequteMan
Guest
Sen. Ita Enang (PDP-Akwa Ibom) has said that senators who defect from one political party to another will lose their seats as the law does not allow anyone who defects to retain the seat.
He explained that while it was acceptable for politicians to defect to another party, it was unacceptable for them to retain their seats.
Some senators on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) promised to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC) when the senate resumed from its recess.
Enang said that the law clearly mandated that any member intending to defect to another party must prove that there was a division in the member’s current party or the party had merged.
According to him, there is currently no division in the PDP as declared by the court, adding that members of the PDP intending to defect have no ground upon which to defect.
“Section 68 (1) (g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, provides that a member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall vacate his seat in the House of which he is a member.
“This shall happen if being a person whose election to the House was sponsored by a political party.”
The section, according to him, also adds that “he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that House was elected.
It further said: “Provided that his membership of the later political party is not as a result of a division in the political party of which he was previously a member.
“Secondly as a result of a merger of two or more political parties or factions by one of which he was previously sponsored.’’
The lawmaker said that it was lawful for the presiding officer (the Senate President) to declare vacant the seat of any lawmaker who defected to another party.
He said that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would, thereafter , be asked to conduct fresh elections to fill the vacancy.
He said that the fact that some lawmakers had defected in past and were ignored did not make the situation right.
He explained that while it was acceptable for politicians to defect to another party, it was unacceptable for them to retain their seats.
Some senators on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) promised to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC) when the senate resumed from its recess.
Enang said that the law clearly mandated that any member intending to defect to another party must prove that there was a division in the member’s current party or the party had merged.
According to him, there is currently no division in the PDP as declared by the court, adding that members of the PDP intending to defect have no ground upon which to defect.
“Section 68 (1) (g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, provides that a member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall vacate his seat in the House of which he is a member.
“This shall happen if being a person whose election to the House was sponsored by a political party.”
The section, according to him, also adds that “he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that House was elected.
It further said: “Provided that his membership of the later political party is not as a result of a division in the political party of which he was previously a member.
“Secondly as a result of a merger of two or more political parties or factions by one of which he was previously sponsored.’’
The lawmaker said that it was lawful for the presiding officer (the Senate President) to declare vacant the seat of any lawmaker who defected to another party.
He said that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would, thereafter , be asked to conduct fresh elections to fill the vacancy.
He said that the fact that some lawmakers had defected in past and were ignored did not make the situation right.