Defection: Court Sacks Ali Ahmad, Moshood Mustapha and 35 Other Reps.

Date: 2014-03-31

The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered 37 former members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to resign their seats at the House of Representatives for defecting to the All Progressives Congress, (APC).

Delivering judgment, Justice Adeniyi Ademola held that the defected lawmakers no longer had any business, morally and legally, to stay in the House of Reps.

He said they should honourably resign from their seats as members of the House of Representative , having moved to another political party, while their tenure had yet to expire.

“Having perused the arguments of counsel and the constitutional provisions, it is clear and unambiguous that the defendants were sponsored by the PDP and won the election on its platform.

“It is also the court’s opinion that their tenure has not expired and there is no division in the PDP.

“The defendants are, therefore, not competent to vote or contribute to any proceedings in the House of Representatives.

“An order of perpetual injunction is, hereby, ordered, restraining them from altering or attempting to change the leadership of the House of Reps,’’ Ademola said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the PDP had on Jan. 7 instituted a suit seeking to restrain the House of Representatives from altering the composition of its leadership.

The party had commenced the action following the defection of 37 lawmakers, who won election on its platform, to the opposition APC.

Mr Yunus Usman (SAN), PDP’s counsel had, while arguing his originating summons, faulted the cross-carpeting of the lawmakers, saying that the legislators did so during the dependency of a judgment.

He argued that by virtue of the Oct. 2013 judgment of Justice Evoh Chukwu, which said there was no division in PDP, the matter had been laid to rest.

Usman had further submitted that by virtue of the provision of Section 68(1)(g) of the 1999 Nigerian constitution, as amended, the  lawmakers ought to have vacated their seats immediately.

Mr Mamoud Magaji (SAN), counsel to the defendants, had in his submission, argued that it was wrong for the PDP to have sought to restrain its former members from House activities for defecting.

Other defence counsel, Mr Niyi Akintola, SAN, Mr Sebastian Hon, SAN, Mr James Ocholi,SAN, Mr Abiodun Owonikoko,SAN, and Jibril Okutepa,SAN, had prayed the court to dismiss the suit.

(NAN)

 

Cloud Tag: What's trending

Click on a word/phrase to read more about it.

KWAFFA     Osinbajo     Bashir Omolaja Bolarinwa     Oni Adebayo     Goodluck Jonathan     Unicontinental Construction Company     Kayode Alabi     Jamiu Oyawoye     Hijaab     Hikmah AbdulKareem     Kupchi Hosea Maxwell     Aliyu U. Tilde     Muyiwa Oladipo Kanu     Sarah Jubril     Ahmad Belgore     Turaki     Mopelola Abdulmaliq-Bashir     TIIDELab     Olatunde Jare     Patigi Regatta     Sarakite     Taibat Ayinke Ahmed     Odolaye Aremu     Omar Bolaji Gambari     Alfa Belgore     Abdulfatah Ahmed     Aishat Sulu-Gambari     Oke-Oyi     Gobir     Kwara Restoration Project     Kayode Bankole     Fawenu     Adeniyi Ojo     A.O. Belgore     Demola Banu     Emmanuel Olatunji Adesoye     Senior Special Assistant On Student Affairs     KFA     Share-Tsaragi     Yashikira     Harrison Osauwagboe     Mansurat Amuda-Kannike     Sidikat Uthman Ajibola     IHS     John Olobayo     Idris Garuba     Sadiq Umar     Kayode Ogunlowo     Saadatu Modibbo-Kawu     Kwara Pdp     Kabir Shagaya     Gbenga Olawepo     Wahab Olasupo Egbewole     Ilorin Likeminds Foundation     Muslim Stakeholders Of Kwara State     Metro Park     SWAN     Medinat Folorunsho Salman     Sunday Fagbemi     Aliyu Adebayo     Igbaja     COVID     Okedare     Ndakene     Quareeb     Isiaka Oniwa     Abdulmumini Jawondo     Shuaibu Yaman     Umar Yakubu Jaja     Olaiya Zuberu     Boko Haram     General Hospital, Offa     Yusuf Badmus     Sheikh Ridhwanullah     Taofik Abdulkareem Babaita     Kassim Babamale     Adamu Ibrahim Sabi    

Cloud Tag: What's trending

Click on a word/phrase to read more about it.

SUBEB     CLAY POT     TIC     Sarkin Malamai     Mukhtar Shagaya     Kwara State Branch Of The National Library     TESCOM     MAI Akande     Bareke     General Hospital, Offa     Mutawalle     Idris Garba     Federal Allocation     Shururat Olatinwo     Haruna Tambiri Mohammed     T And K FOODS     Salmon Babatunde Salmon     Shagari     Binta Abubakar-Mora     United Nigeria Congress Party     Ilorin Central Mosque     Abdulfatah Ahmed     Yahaya Seriki Gambari     Okala Baba     Baaziki Sulaiman     Baruba     Ilofa     Idowu Aremu     Kulende     Moses Adekanye     Salaudeen Oyewale     Towoju     Igbomina     NIPR     Sam Onile     Col. Ibrahim Taiwo     Yakubu Dogara     Folorunsho Erubu     Olayinka Are     Ilorin East/South Federal Constituency     Ishaq Salman     Magaji Are     Kwara State Governor     Kwara South     Tunde Oyawoye     Kaosarah Adeyi     Bello Oyebanji     Yakubu Mohammed Abdullahi     Bello Oyedepo     Mustapha Olanipekun     Zaratu Umar     Plat Technologies Limited     Isin     Adama Isa     Olupako     Muslim Media Watch Group Of Nigeria     Belgore     Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq     Mohammed Haruna     Arca Santa     Kwara     JAAC     Umar Ahmed Gunu     Lola Olabayo     Lateef Ademola Olatunji     NIRSAL     Adeniyi Ojo     Jimba Babatunde     Olabode Towoju     Abiodun Oyedepo     Elelu     Valsolar Consultoria     Danladi     VADA     Sadiq Umar     Saheed Akinwumi     Neo Mundo Ltd