It may not yet uhuru for the member Representing Ahiazu/Ezinihitte Mbasie Federal constituency in the National Assembly, Hon Raphael Nnanna Igbokwe his seat for who on Tuesday dumped PDP for APC, in a move that left controversial traces at the House of Representatives.
Igbokwe, a two time lawmaker is standing a risk of losing his defection being challenged by the PDP members of the National Assembly, who alongside their APGA and Labour Party members walked out of the chamber when their protest against the acceptance of the lawmakers defection was overruled by Speaker Yakubu Dogara.
PDP sources at the party secretariat, Abuja and the caucus at the National Assembly said that Igbokwe’s matter may be trashed out in court where the aggrieved PDP members are bent on seeking the rule of law to decide the lawmakers fate since Dogara felt otherwise about their complaints.
Trumpeta learnt that a team of legal practitioners has been consulted to take up the matter for judicial remedy.
After a long period of suspicion that Igbokwe is no longer a member of the PDP, the party that gave him ticket to be a member of the national Assembly, the lawmaker on Tuesday called it quits with the umbrella party but not without a controversial walkout form the chamber staged by members elected under PDP, APGA and Labour Party platforms who raised several points of order including a reference to a supreme court judgment to stall the movement, but it failed.
Earlier, the PDP members noted that the Supreme Court judgment indicates that defection means the member loses his seat as the consequences. But their argument was deflated by Dogara on another provision of the 1999 constitution as amended.
Addressing journalists immediately after the session, the PDP caucus in solidarity with APGA, and Labour party said they were heading back to court to seek reinterpretation of the Supreme Court judgment on members defection especially when there is no division in his or her party. But Igbokwe in a letter dated 19th December, 2017 addressed to the Speaker, disclosed that he has registered and joined the APC since January, 2017.
According to the Ahiazu/Ezinihitte, Fed Lawmakers, “my decision to join the APC as at the time I did was as a result of the leadership crisis/division that rocked the PDP”
