The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has announced that members of the Imo state House of Assembly who were elected under their platform but have defected to the APC, have lost their seats according to the party’s national leadership. The statement was released by the PDP spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, on January 29th.
Several members of the Imo state House of Assembly, including Speaker Collins Chiji and Deputy Speaker Okey Onyekanma, who were elected under the PDP, have defected to the APC following the emergence of Hope Uzodinma of the APC as the new governor of the state.
The PDP described the lawmakers’ defection as an unpatriotic and unpardonable betrayal of their constituencies. According to the party, the defection violates the constitution, leading to the automatic loss of their seats in the state assembly.
The party criticized the defectors for lacking character and failing to show leadership capacity in moments of challenges, accusing them of being motivated by personal pecuniary and political interests.
The PDP emphasized that under the 1999 Constitution (as amended), legislators who switch political parties after being elected automatically lose their membership of the legislative house. The party called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to initiate the process for conducting fresh elections into the respective constituencies where the seats have been vacated.
The statement concluded with the assertion that the defectors no longer have a place in the state assembly due to the absence of any division or merger within the PDP.