The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has dismissed President Bola Tinubu’s intervention in the Rivers State political crisis, as the party on Tuesday insisted on fresh elections for the 25 members of the State House of Assembly who defected from the party to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The PDP’s National Working Committee (NWC) at the end of its Emergency Meeting on what it tagged Political Developments in Rivers State on Tuesday said that there was no other remedy to return the state lawmakers to the Assembly except by fresh election.
This is despite President Tinubu’s intervention on the matter and the peace accord signed on Monday between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
SaharaReporters reported on Monday that President Tinubu intervened in the political crisis rocking the state, as the factional Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Edison Ehie, was mandated to recognise 27 members of the Assembly who defected to the APC penultimate Monday.
SaharaReporters also obtained the eight-point resolution from the close-door meeting with President Tinubu, which also had Governor Fubara, a former governor of the state, Peter Odili, Wike and other stakeholders in attendance at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
President Tinubu and the Federal Government during the meeting distanced themselves from the political crisis.
Meanwhile, at the end of the closed-door meeting, an eight-point resolution was reached in which all the stakeholders appended their signatures to bring the crisis to an end.
Part of the resolution which SaharaReporters obtained reads: “All matters in court to be withdrawn immediately. Also, all impeachment proceedings initiated against the governor by the state House of Assembly should be dropped immediately.”
The resolution was signed by Fubara, Wike; National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; Speaker, Rivers State Assembly, Martin Amaewhule; PDP Chairman, Rivers State, Aaron Chukwuemeka and APC Chairman, Rivers State, Tony Okocha.
The resolution added, “The leadership of the Rivers State House of Assembly as led by the Rt. Hon. Martin Amaewhule shall be recognised alongside the 27 members who resigned from the PDP.
“The remunerations and benefits of all members of the Rivers State House of Assembly and their staff must be reinstated immediately and the Governor of Rivers State shall henceforth not interfere with the full funding of the Rivers State House of Assembly.”
However, the PDP National Working Committee on Tuesday at the end of its Emergency Meeting stated in a statement issued by its Acting National Chairman, Amb. Umar Iliya Damagum, that there is no remedy for the 25 State Assembly members, rather, they should prepare for fresh election.
The statement read: “The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) asserts that there is no remedy for the 25 former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly who by virtue of Section 109 (1)(g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) vacated and lost their seats by reason of defection from the PDP, the Party platform upon which they were elected into the House of Assembly.
“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.
“The 25 former Rivers lawmakers freely and without any cause vacated their seats, being fully aware of the consequences of defection from the Party upon which they were elected into the Rivers State House of Assembly without the conditions stipulated by the 1999 Constitution.
“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 25 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 seat 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.”
