PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria (ChatnewsTV) — Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former National Publicity Secretary of the defunct New Peoples Democratic Party (nPDP), has declared that 27 lawmakers who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC in Rivers State have lost their seats in the State House of Assembly.
In a statement released Friday, Eze emphasized that the lawmakers, led by former Speaker Martin Amaewhule, automatically ceased to be members of the Assembly following their defection on December 11, 2023. Eze referenced Section 109(1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution, stating, “By law, their seats are vacated without the need for a court order.”
Eze’s comments come in the wake of a protracted political crisis in Rivers State involving the defected lawmakers, Governor Siminalaye Fubara, and Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike. The crisis deepened following a Court of Appeal ruling on Thursday that dismissed an appeal filed by Governor Fubara, challenging an earlier judgment nullifying the 2024 Rivers State budget, passed by the defected lawmakers.
“The appellate court did not adjudicate on the legitimacy of the defections,” Eze clarified, adding that the lawmakers are no longer legally recognized members of the Assembly. “Fubara will not grant them any legality by re-presenting the budget before them,” he said.
Eze accused certain politicians of exploiting the judiciary to destabilize the state and urged Governor Fubara to remain steadfast. “Governor Fubara must stand firm and not yield to intimidation or judicial harassment from Wike and his adversaries,” Eze warned.
While advising the Rivers State government to appeal the judgment, Eze called on the judiciary to deliver “sound and time-tested judgments devoid of technicalities” and resist attempts to involve the courts in political schemes.
“The plot to set Rivers State on fire or attempt to impeach the Governor will be resisted,” he declared, urging calm among the governor’s supporters.
