’27 APC lawmakers have lost their seats’, New facts emerge on why Gov Fubara cannot be impeached

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says the 27 All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers at the Rivers House of Assembly can’t impeach Gov. Siminalayi Fubara, because they are no longer members of the House.

Mr Debo Ologunagba, the PDP National Publicity Secretary, said this at a news conference on Wednesday in Abuja.

Ologunagba said that the directive by the state APC chapter for the lawmakers to commence impeachment proceedings against the governor was in vain.

He said that the APC lawmakers had since vacated their seats at the House, by virtue of Section 109 (1) (g) of the 1999 Constitution.

“The lawmakers claiming to be APC members lost their seats after their defection from the PDP, the political party platform on which they were elected into the House.

“For emphasis, Section 109 (1) (g) of the 1999 Constitution provides that: a member of a House of Assembly shall vacate his seat in the House if … (g) being a person whose election to the House of Assembly was sponsored by a political Party, he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that House was elected.

“It should be noted that Section 109 (1) (g) of the Constitution is self-executory. The import of this provision is that the members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, who defected, have vacated their seat by reason of that defection,” he said.

Ologunagba advised APC to come to terms with the fact that Rivers was home to PDP and that the people of the state were not ready to leave the party.

It will be recalled the controversies that trailed a supposed peace resolution drafted and signed with former Governor Nyesom Wike by  PDP Governor Fubara presided over by APC President Bola Tinubu at a meeting attended mainly by APC leaders inside APC-controlled Aso Rock presidential villa.

Reportedly, whereas Fubara was warned against the signing as neither Tinubu nor Wike could be trusted to such resolution, he said he signed it because he wanted peace for his state.

However, the Wike’s lawmakers never stopped to politick despite the peace accord, but Governor Fubara appears to be  firm on his guard against whatever attempt their unfaithfulness would make, hence the relevance of the PDP’s statement as the expelled.

The PDP, from the point of law, has read it out clearly to them that they lost their seats as Rivers State House of Assembly members since they defected from PDP.