Eko Hot Blog reports that popular Constitutional lawyer, Femi Falana has stated that the 27 Rivers State Assembly members who had their seats vacated lacked proper legal counsel.
It would be recalled that the five-man Assembly declared the seats of members who defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) vacant, amid impeachment efforts against Governor Sim Fubara.
None of the affected lawmakers were present when their seats were declared vacant by the Assembly.
The factional Speaker, loyal to the governor, cited the constitution to justify the decision, calling for INEC to hold elections for the vacant positions.
Falana speaking on the defection of the lawmakers said, “The legislators were not exposed to sound legal advice. Everybody should know that once the Supreme Court has made a pronouncement on a matter in any country, you’re bound to comply, and if you’re going to take any decision, you must study the judgement critically.
“Just yesterday, 20 legislators who defected from the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, to the All Progressives Congress, APC, had their seats declared vacant by the court. That’s the law; unless the Supreme Court decides to change it, that is the law in Nigeria today.
“It’s also a good development; it’s a good law; it’s a good interpretation that there should be no political prostitution in the country because it’s tantamount to political immorality if you vote on the platform of a political party and you abandon the party; you’re advised to go and try your luck by contesting again under the new political party.”
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