Rivers State Government Insists Defected Lawmakers’ Seats Remain Vacant

Rivers clarifies that no court ruling has reinstated the Amaewhule-led faction in the State Assembly after their defection

In a recent clarification, the Rivers State Government has emphasized that defected lawmakers’ seats remain vacant following their defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC). The government reiterated that the Court of Appeal ruling did not reinstate the Martin Amaewhule-led faction of the State House of Assembly, as widely speculated.

The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Israel Dagogo Iboroma, SAN, addressed the issue in a statement, explaining that the defected lawmakers’ seats remain vacant based on constitutional provisions. According to Iboroma, the lawmakers, including Amaewhule, automatically vacated their positions when they switched parties on December 11, 2023, in line with Section 109(1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution, which mandates that elected officials lose their seats if they defect from the party they were elected under.

Iboroma further clarified that the defection of Amaewhule and 26 other lawmakers was never part of the case at the Federal High Court or the Court of Appeal. The court proceedings, he said, focused solely on the 2023 Appropriation Law and the National Assembly’s involvement in Rivers State’s legislative matters. Therefore, no legal decision has reversed the fact that defected lawmakers’ seats remain vacant.

In response to reports claiming that the ruling reaffirms the status of the defected legislators, Iboroma dismissed such narratives as false. He reiterated that there has been no legal reinstatement of the lawmakers and that the government intends to appeal the recent ruling to the Supreme Court. Moreover, the state plans to file a request for a stay of execution to ensure that the defected lawmakers’ seats remain vacant pending the final decision.

Governor Siminalayi Fubara has also urged the public to disregard any misleading information suggesting that the defected lawmakers are still active members of the Assembly. The governor assured the people of Rivers State that necessary legal actions are being taken to protect the integrity of the state’s legislative processes.