The Peoples Democratic Party has declared that the All Progressives Congress lawmakers in the Rivers State House of Assembly lack the authority to impeach Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
The party National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, gave Governor Fubara the assurance during a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday.
According to Ologunagba, the directive issued by the Rivers State APC chapter for the lawmakers to initiate impeachment proceedings against the governor is futile.
He explained that the APC lawmakers have already vacated their seats in the House, as stipulated by Section 109 (1) (g) of the 1999 Constitution, according to Daily Post.
He insisted that the defected lawmakers no longer possess the legal standing to take any actions, including impeachment proceedings, within the House.
“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.
