...declares seat vacant, fines embattled Senator N5Million

...orders PDP to conduct bye-election in A'Ibom North-East Senatorial District


The Federal High Court in Abuja has sacked Senator Bassey Albert Akpan from the Senate for defecting to the Young Progressives Party, YPP.

The court has also declared his seat vacant and has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to conduct a bye-election to fill the vacant seat.

The Judge, Hon. Justice Fadima Murtala Aminu in a suit no FHC/ABJ/CS/1249/2022 between the plaintiff being the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and the defendants including, Senator Bassey Albert, President of the Senate and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, dated Friday 20th January, 2023, ruled that the embattled Senator who was sponsored to the office of a Senator by the plaintiff, the PDP is no longer qualified to retain his seat in the Senate having resigned his membership of the PDP before the expiration of the period for which he was elected to represent the people of Akwa Ibom North- East Senatorial District.

Relying on section 65(2)[B] of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 the court declared Bassey Albert's seat vacant.

The Court has ordered INEC to conduct a bye-election within 14days of the ruling dated 20th January to fill the vacant seat occasioned by his sack.

Also, the Judge ordered Senator Bassey to “refund to the Senate of the National Assembly all monies, allowances, or other financial and material benefits paid, given or yielded to him after July 15, 2022.

The court ruling reads in parts; “This Honourable Court hereby grants an order of injunction restraining the 1st defendant from claiming to be parading himself as Senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District(otherwise known as Uyo Senatorial District) in the Senate”.

“The Ist defendant is to pay N5,000,000as cost of this suit to the plaintiff"(Five Million Naira)”.