The PDP told an Abuja Federal High Court so in its preliminary objection to a suit filed by Senator Bello Hayatu and 50 others, including members of the House of Representatives who defected to the APC, to stop their seats from being declared vacant.
PDP, its National Chairman, the Senate President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Independent National Electoral Commissioners are listed as the defendants in the suit, which came up for hearing on Wednesday before Justice Ahmed Mohammed.
In the suit, the plaintiffs are asking the court to restrain the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives from conducting any proceedings aimed at declaring their seats, and that of any other member of the PDP who intend to join another political party, vacant.
They are equally asking the court to restrain INEC from accepting nominations of any candidate and conducting bye-elections aimed at filing their seats.
The court had on December 17, 2013, ordered all the parties involved in the suit to maintain status quo, pending the determination of the matter. After the order, the PDP wrote Speaker Aminu Tambuwal, asking him to order the 37 defected lawmakers to return to the party.
But the suit could not be heard at the resumption of proceedings on Wednesday because all the parties had not filed their processes.
Moves by PDP counsel, Chief Joe-Kyari Gadzama, SAN, to get the court to hear his preliminary objection were not successful as Justice Mohammed ruled that if the originating summons was not ripe for hearing, the preliminary objections would also not be ripe for hearing.
Justice Mohammed adjourned the matter to January 29 to hear the preliminary objection, in the event that the originating summons would be ready for hearing.
However, although PDP’s response to the suit was not heard on Wednesday, the party, in a copy of its preliminary objection, which was obtained by journalists, insisted that the seats of the defected lawmakers must be declared vacant.
The party said, “Both the law and the PDP Constitution are very clear on the issues raised by the plaintiff. One cannot abandon the political party upon whose platform he was elected as a member of parliament and then proceed to another political party while holding unto that parliamentary seat.
“Additionally, the law should take its course in that the seat of any of the plaintiffs who decamp to other political parties should be declared vacant.”
In the same vein, PDP maintained that the lawmakers had failed to show that they were qualified to benefit from the provisions of section 68 (1) (g) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which allows for such defection in cases of division within political parties.
The party said the plaintiffs had failed to show the existence of such division in the party.
PDP insisted that the suit should be struck out because the lawmakers lacked the legal standing to institute and sustain it, adding that it displayed no cause, and was an abuse of court process.
It also argued that the matter was an intra-party affair for which it has various administrative and legal mechanisms which were not exhausted by the lawmakers.
The lawmakers had in the suit, argued that they went to court to protect their rights as members of the National Assembly following threats by the PDP to declare their seats vacant, but the party (PDP) argued that the legislators had no rights to protect as the Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives enjoyed immunity for acts done on the floor of the Senate and the House, including conducting proceedings towards declaring their seats vacant. Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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I dey laugh! what has happened to the Suoreme Court Judgement in Atilu vs Obasanjo/PDP? PDP should stop been desperate. Nigerians know who to vote for in 2015.
ReplyDeleteAtiku/Obasanjo's case was that of a joint ticket for which there could not be one without the other before they both went to the polls. The defected lawmakers are individual case by case basis.
ReplyDeleteBut people have defecting to PDP for years now the tide has turned and they're bitter.
ReplyDeleteJust that judiciary is nothing in Nija; Federal government determines court decisions.
ReplyDeleteLet's keep watching.
Just that judiciary is nothing in Nija; Federal government determines court decisions.
ReplyDeleteLet's keep watching.
Defecting to another party is not the issue. You are free to do that . What is at stake is whether or not you have the right to keep the seat you won while under another party. OBJ/Atikus case is not the same. Yes people have been decamping from one party to the other but the constitution is very clear about this; except there are two factionall groups then you have to also leave the post. I personally want this issue to be put to rest once and for all so that our politicians would stop playing to the gallery. It will also strengthen all political parties and office holders would learn to abide by party discipline and ideologies. For instance the judgement that brought ameachi to power clearly stated that pdp won the election but that he (ameachi ) should have been the candidate rather than omehia. So in that instance it thus means that ameachi seizes to be gov immediately he decamps to another party. Other than political office holders any party member is free to move around has he/she wants. Enough has been said for and against this; let the courts decide
ReplyDeleteUseless party, party of thieves, shameless animals. Instead of you to think of how to deal with your member who has disgraced you, and made Nigerians to now see that PDP is the main problem we have in this country, you are busy fooling yourselves. Look as far as u ve refused to sack Oduah, Nigerians will never vote for Jonathan, period.
ReplyDeleteThis has never happened and it will not. Gov Issa Yuguda in 2007 contested as gov under ANPP and he won, of which after some months defected to PDP again. Heaven did not fall. Nigerian had witness series of these issues since 1999. PDP shld go and seat and hv a re-think collectivelly while concentrating on those electoral promises of GEJ that have no shoes. Time shall tell.
ReplyDeleteIsa Yuguda of Bauchi state decamp to PDP from ANPP seat, there wasn't any noise, Patricia Etteh was brought to the House by AD latet decamp to PDP, no noise, three PDP President invited APGA governor to Decamp to PDP, no noise. Lets wait for the 4190 Judiciary.
ReplyDelete