kahal29:
The judgement erroneously relied on Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) as well as the judgment of the Supreme Court in Faleke v. INEC.

Unfortunately, the Supreme Court decision in Faleke v. INEC does not relate to the consequence of the defection of a governor from one political party to the other. A more apt instance will be the Atiku Abubakar scenario wherein Atiku Abubakar as Vice President, elected under the PDP, defected to the then Action Congress.

The position of the Supreme Court was reported as Attorney General of the Federation V. Abubakar (2007) 10 NWLR (part 1041) 1. At page 124 of the report, Justice Onnoghen set down the position thus:

“There is nowhere in the 1999 Constitution where it is stated that the President or Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be removed or is removable from that office if he defects from the political party on whose platform he was elected to that office and joins another political party.”

It is the constitutional responsibility of the legislature to make or amend the laws including the constitution, where the need arises, while that of the judiciary remains to interpret and apply the laws so made or amended. The courts can therefore not add or subtract from the law as enacted by the legislature under the guise of judicial interpretation of the constitution or statute…”

Secondly the case of Amaechi vs Omehia does not apply here cos it is a pre election matter/case.

What difference does it being a pre-election matter have to do with the case. The issue is whether votes of one party are transferable by virtue of defection. It precedes the issue of being pre-election or not. Though I agree the Constitution is silent about removal of a governor from office through the courts and I also suspect this could be classed as a civil proceeding. However, I'll like to see what the higher courts will think of this judgement. A Daniel has come to judgement or judicial rascality?

When they're done with Umahi, Ayade should follow

When people voted, they voted for the party, not individual names. So if you defect, as a flag bearer, you might as well vacate the seat. This will serve as a deterrent to others who win under a party and defect to another.

MEGAWATCH:




Hahaha why you come hate the man naa?

The man na fighter o and short people Sabi how to fight well well.

"Short people" can fight, but cannot win a just cause in the court of law.

So Ayade and Mattawale are on their way out of the juicy seats of government.

So sad

Aonkuuse:
I know you will be a very stupid Idio*t for calling names first but I must tell you, am in Benue and must put it to you that Ortom defected to PDP in the third year of his first Tenure (in 2018 precisely) and stay in power more than one year before his re-election in 2019

You sound very stupid n gullible. Do you want a law court to giv u justice without seeking for it. In law we hav what is called fiti juria, fiti judex. Did APC as political party sue Ortom and the court refuses to giv justice?
Do you know at that time there was already a conflict and division in APC, then rAPC was formed as a parallel party within the APC and Buba Galadima was named the chairman of rAPC by saraki and kwankwaso block . The constitution is clear on this, once there is a division within ur party, an elected officials of the party can decamp to another party. At the time umahi decamped there was no parallel or a division in PDP, he said he reasons of joining APC was to join hands with Buhari in central to develop the country and PDP have not be fair to south east.

kahal29:
The judgement erroneously relied on Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) as well as the judgment of the Supreme Court in Faleke v. INEC.

Unfortunately, the Supreme Court decision in Faleke v. INEC does not relate to the consequence of the defection of a governor from one political party to the other. A more apt instance will be the Atiku Abubakar scenario wherein Atiku Abubakar as Vice President, elected under the PDP, defected to the then Action Congress.

The position of the Supreme Court was reported as Attorney General of the Federation V. Abubakar (2007) 10 NWLR (part 1041) 1. At page 124 of the report, Justice Onnoghen set down the position thus:

“There is nowhere in the 1999 Constitution where it is stated that the President or Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be removed or is removable from that office if he defects from the political party on whose platform he was elected to that office and joins another political party.”

It is the constitutional responsibility of the legislature to make or amend the laws including the constitution, where the need arises, while that of the judiciary remains to interpret and apply the laws so made or amended. The courts can therefore not add or subtract from the law as enacted by the legislature under the guise of judicial interpretation of the constitution or statute…”

Secondly the case of Amaechi vs Omehia does not apply here cos it is a pre election matter/case.

What is the meaning of pre election matter/case? How is this umahi’s case any different and not pre election as u call it for ur convinced??

What is a pre election case/matter?

Topmaike007:
My lawyers in the house una never sleep?

And moreover na jealousy dey worry all of una,my amiable and Best performing governor will finish is tenure..na idu igariwey that is in house of assembly for years and yet we in Ehugbo do not have power supply for almost a year...

Make Dem go pick Maria and I will give it a nod

God bless Ehugbo,God bless Afikpo North

Is Maria a PDP member?

I no know how una dey take reason sometimes.

Aonkuuse:
You that read the constitution, why did the court not sack Ortom of APC when he defected to PDP with APC mandate It's clear that judge has a flag of PDP. Was it not recently the house reject the bill of removal from office due to cross-carpeting??

Did the APC take Ortom to court?

/

The judge that handled the case is a real gangster


/

philasine:
Judges are now the king makers, you said votes belong to a political party but in the case of Bayelsa state the votes belong to the governor and deputy governor whom had error in his name and the vote were transferred to the PDP, in this case the vote now belong to the party no longer the candidate.

What it means is that when a political party nominates a candidate and a running mate, the three of them are now tied to the same umbilical cord.

If anything happens to the party, the candidates are affected.

If it happens to the candidates, the party is affected.

Now, what this judgment is saying is that a candidate can not, by himself, detach himself from that umbilical cord without being harmed which is what is happening to Umahi now.

descartes400:



what this judge has done is to extend to governors a provision which is specifi­cally addressed to National Assembly. This is judicial legislation and is unconstitutional.

The principle that if you are elected on the platform of one party, you shouldn’t change to another party without resigning is a good one. I think it was an unfortunate omission that the governors were not included. I agree with the judge that the same principle applies, both as a principle of law and morality.

What l'm saying in essence above is that in as much as the principle upon which the judge based his judgement is a good one, it is not within the jurisdiction of the court/judiciary to legislate laws...that's the purview of the Legislature.

The bold is the conclusion of the whole matter. The judge err in adding to the Constitution.

nony43:
The Governor of Cross River state should be sacked too. From PDP to APC .

Ayade that maltex bottle is next.

OfficialAwol:


Is Maria a PDP member?

I no know how una dey take reason sometimes.

she decamped to PDP before Idu won her in primary election

What do you expect from lawyers seeking attention.
Are Umahi & cohorts the first to decamp or would they be the last to decamp ?

kahal29:
The judgement erroneously relied on Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) as well as the judgment of the Supreme Court in Faleke v. INEC.

Unfortunately, the Supreme Court decision in Faleke v. INEC does not relate to the consequence of the defection of a governor from one political party to the other. A more apt instance will be the Atiku Abubakar scenario wherein Atiku Abubakar as Vice President, elected under the PDP, defected to the then Action Congress.

The position of the Supreme Court was reported as Attorney General of the Federation V. Abubakar (2007) 10 NWLR (part 1041) 1. At page 124 of the report, Justice Onnoghen set down the position thus:

“There is nowhere in the 1999 Constitution where it is stated that the President or Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be removed or is removable from that office if he defects from the political party on whose platform he was elected to that office and joins another political party.”

It is the constitutional responsibility of the legislature to make or amend the laws including the constitution, where the need arises, while that of the judiciary remains to interpret and apply the laws so made or amended. The courts can therefore not add or subtract from the law as enacted by the legislature under the guise of judicial interpretation of the constitution or statute…”

Secondly the case of Amaechi vs Omehia does not apply here cos it is a pre election matter/case.

Atiku case is different from this one. Atiku defected to contest the presidential election and not to continue in office. Umahi defected to continue in office as governor. The day Ebonyi people voted l, they did it for the PDP and not APC. They want their governor to be on the platform on PDP and for the governor to transfer the mandate to APC is against the natural justice. The courts have on many occasions said the votes belong to the political parties. Obasaki's case is also different. He defected to contest election. A oud the owner of this number 08036307323, he is a fraudster.

Topmaike007:
she decamped to PDP before Idu won her in primary election

Oh well, didn't know she's now in PDP.

Nonetheless, PDP cannot hand its mandate to an unelected decampee.

By law, PDP would only nominate the next most ranking elected PDP official at the state level to succeed Umahi.

Ali Odefa would have benefitted from this judgment being the Deputy Speaker who didn't defect but I guess his court case denied him of it. Another factor that may have worked against him is zoning.

Ebonyi South needs to serve out its tenure and that's where Idu Igariwey comes in.

OfficialAwol:


What it means is that when a political party nominates a candidate and a running mate, the three of them are now tied to the same umbilical cord.

If anything happens to the party, the candidates are affected.

If it happens to the candidates, the party is affected.

Now, what this judgment is saying is that a candidate can not, by himself, detach himself from that umbilical cord without being harmed which is what is happening to Umahi now.

Your argument is valid. Ebonyi people wanted their governor to be a PDP member and that's why they voted for PDP on 9/03/19. How come their governor is now on the platform of another party? If they would have wanted their governor on the platform of APC, they would have voted for the APC candidate on 9/03/19.

OfficialAwol:


What it means is that when a political party nominates a candidate and a running mate, the three of them are now tied to the same umbilical cord.

If anything happens to the party, the candidates are affected.

If it happens to the candidates, the party is affected.

Now, what this judgment is saying is that a candidate can not, by himself, detach himself from that umbilical cord without being harmed which is what is happening to Umahi now.

Your argument is valid. Ebonyi people wanted their governor to be a PDP member and that's why they voted for PDP on 9/03/19. How come their governor is now on the platform of another party? If they would have wanted their governor on the platform of APC, they would have voted for the APC candidate on 9/03/19. Avoid the owner of this number 08036307323, he is a fraudster.

kahal29:


See you cannot build something on nothing expect it to stand. The question the higher court will try to answer is _ Which defection law backed this judgment?

The judge simply went on judicial voyage and according to supreme court in the case of Attorney General of the Federation V. Abubakar (2007) 10 NWLR (part 1041) 1. At page 124 of the report, Justice Onnoghen set down the position thus:

It is the constitutional responsibility of the legislature to make or amend the laws including the constitution, where the need arises, while that of the judiciary remains to interpret and apply the laws so made or amended. The courts can therefore not add or subtract from the law as enacted by the legislature under the guise of judicial interpretation of the constitution or statute…”

In this instant case

“There is nowhere in the 1999 Constitution where it is stated that the President or Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be removed or is removable from that office if he defects from the political party on whose platform he was elected to that office and joins another political party.”

You have been running amok all over the place yet your narrow-mindedness has prevented you from seeing and comprehending the obvious....

In Amaechi vs Omehia which you earlier cited, the definitive argument upheld by the Supreme Court is that elections are sponsored and won exclusively by political parties and not individuals.

The trial judge also had the presence of mind to make reference to the 1999 constitution addressing same.

As it stands, there are both judicial precedence and a constitutional provision/address in the matter...

If Buhari chooses to remain disinterested, Umahi will go...

TGM2015:


The bold is the conclusion of the whole matter. The judge err in adding to the Constitution.

Abeg help me tell him

ovie8200:



If you must know Mr. Olodo, Ortom ran his second term under PDP just like what Obasaki did in Edo stated and not under APC evil......

Listen to yourself. Grand patron of Olodo. He defected with APGA mandate? And Umahi defected not to contest. Umahi have nothing to worry about.

ictplotter:

You sound very stupid n gullible. Do you want a law court to giv u justice without seeking for it. In law we hav what is called fiti juria, fiti judex. Did APC as political party sue Ortom and the court refuses to giv justice?
Do you know at that time there was already a conflict and division in APC, then rAPC was formed as a parallel party within the APC and Buba Galadima was named the chairman of rAPC by saraki and kwankwaso block . The constitution is clear on this, once there is a division within ur party, an elected officials of the party can decamp to another party. At the time umahi decamped there was no parallel or a division in PDP, he said he reasons of joining APC was to join hands with Buhari in central to develop the country and PDP have not be fair to south east.

There's no division in PDP? You are learning politics from your old uncles, you will be worst than them if you have opportunity. Did you know that Umahi and Ayade does not attend meetings with Wike because they accused him of hijacking the party? Are you aware that Secondus case is still at the supreme court for final judgement. Umahi doesn't have any reason to be worried.

Maxymilliano:
Amaechi VS Omehia 2007.

Votes casted at elections belong to the political party and not the candidate.

Sir Celestine Omehia was removed from office in October 2007 after holding office for five months. The supreme court at that time ruled that he usurped Mr Amaechi's ticket for the election and accordingly should be handed back to the rightful candidate in the eyes of the law.

On this ground, Justice Inyang Ekwo's ruling is sound.

Simple!

oshozondii:

https://independent.ng/court-sack-of-umahi-deputy-lawmakers-in-order-lawyers/?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

LoL even apc top cabal lawyer has said the truth

THE LAW HAVE BEEN INTERPRETED. THOSE ARE THE LOOPHOLES IN OUR LAW, HIDDEN FROM THE PRYING EYES OF JUNIOR POLITICIANS. THAT IT DOESN'T STIPULATE SPECIFICALLY THAT THE GOVERNORS WILL LEAVE THEIR POSITION WHEN THEY CROSS CARPET DOESN'T MEAN IT CAN'T BE INTERPRETED. IF SAME CAN AFFECT THE LAWMAKERS OF WHICH THEY ARE ELECTED ON THE PLATFORM OF A POLITICAL PARTY, THEN WHY NOT THE GOVERNORS. SHALOM

Every individual has the inneliable right to belong to any party of his choice, irrespective of party politics

Because u are elected under the platform of a particular party doesn't mean u can't defect,

U can win victory today under APGA, 2morrow u switch To NPC or NNPC if u like

The law doesn't say u must die in one party

NIGERIAN JUDICIARY IS JUST LIKE A WOMAN'S PUSSY

I Don tyer seff

"The court noted that the crux of the matter was the defection of the 3rd and 4th defendants, Umahi and Igwe, respectively, from the PDP to the APC, and not issue of conflict.

Justice Ekwo said the aver­ments of Umahi and Igwe did not address the issue of defection rightly and frontally but rather resorted to general denial to affidavit evidence.

The depositions of the 3rd and 4th defendants in their counter affidavit were “evasive and insufficient” to competent­ly challenge the plaintiff’s orig­inating process.

It was the opinion of the court that the “immunity clause” in section 308 of the constitution under which Governor Umahi and his dep­uty want to hide is not absolute.

“Section 308 is a veritable constitutional shield” for presi­dent, Vice, Governors, their dep­uties against civil and criminal litigations and not for political reasons.

The court said Umahi and Igwe did not controvert the deposition that total votes scored in an election belong to a political party.

Justice Ekwo said evidence abound that the 2nd defendant (APC) contested the Ebonyi State governorship election held on March 9, 2019, with its own candidates.

“It can be noted that the con­stitution does not deal with the issue of defection lightly”, the court stated, adding that “the 3rd and 4th defendants cannot transfer the votes and victory of the plaintiff on March 9, 2019, to the APC.

“Office of the Governor and Deputy Governor of Ebonyi State belongs to the plaintiff and not the APC.

“The option for Umahi and Igwe is to vacate office and wait for next election to contest elec­tion on the platform of its new party”, the court declared.

The court said the act of the APC, Umahi and his deputy is aimed at “dismantling the 1999 constitution”.

Consequently, the court de­clared that under the democrat­ic system operated in Nigeria, the plaintiff (PDP) won the majority of votes during the election and is entitled to enjoy same till the end of tenure of office for which the election was made".

Please read through.

The judgement of the court aside from looking at the Constitution also was on the basis of evidences and facts. They did not deal with the issue of defection rightly and frontally. Who should be blamed? Umahi's lawyer failed woefully. Maybe now he will add Ozekhome to his legal team to help him out.

If you are sponsored by someone, does it not presuppose that the person is responsible for you in the issue that binds you together as long as you remain with him?

Even if the word "governor" is not mentioned in section 177(c) quoted, he belonged to the PDP, was sponsored by the PDP.

We should get to a point in our democracy where issues like decamping must be addressed. You do not change the goal post in the middle of the game. If you got a position on the platform of a party, you should be expected to be with that party until your tenure expires. Hopefully all those in the state and national assemblies are shown the way out with this.

3exe3:
Umahi should chill he is a gonna

The Constitution is clear the mandates of an election is based on parties not individuals

Besides same case like this was judged in the supreme Court

The best umahi can hope for is for the zamfara state case to be different in the supreme Court.

Kudos to the pdp after being in power for a long time I thought they never knew how to play the part of the opposition

They now seem like real opposition not just a voice in the desert

Umahi's name was not on the ballot paper but pdp. There is no way he would have won the election standing under another party. Let him be ranting as if he owns the country.

The 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) provides for the removal of the Governor or Deputy Governor of a state only in two sections, that is section 188 which provides for the removal of the Governor/Deputy Governor through impeachment by the State House of Assembly and in section 189 which provides for the removal of the Governor/Deputy Governor by the State Executive Council on the groud of permanent incapacity.

Apart from the provisions mentioned above, there is no other groud for the removal of the Governor provided by the Constitution except the Governor resigns his position or is dead, see Section 306 and 181 of the 1999 Constitution.

The Supreme Court in the celebrated case of ATTORNEY-GENERAL OF THE FEDERATION & 2 ORS V. ALHAJI ATIKU ABUBAKAR & 3 ORS (S.C. 31/2007) [2007] NGSC 118 (20 APRIL 2007) held inter alia that  there is no express provision of the vacation of office of the vice president upon defection from his sponsoring political party to a rival party. The vice president can only resign from office as per the provisions of section 306 of the Constitution. The other clear provision relating to cessation of office and removal from office is said to be impeachment in sections 143 and 144 of the Constitution.
Accordingly, the appeal was dismissed.

The decision of the Supreme Court above also applies to the Governor/Deputy Governor of a state because the Constitution provides for right to freedom of association which includes political parties in Section 40.

In summary, section 1(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) provides that:

"This Constitution is supreme and its provisions shall have binding force on the authorities and persons
throughout the Federal Republic of Nigeria."

It further provided in Section 1(3) that:

"If any other law is inconsistent with the provisions of this Constitution, this Constitution shall
prevail, and that other law shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be voiod.

The question begging for answer is: "the declaration of the seat of the Governor/Deputy Governor of Ebonyi State vaccant, is it in line  with the provisions of the Constitution?

Obaseki next

garfield1:


68. (1) A member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall vacate his seat in the House of
which he is a member if -
(a) he becomes a member of another legislative
house.
(b) any other circumstances arise that, if he were
not a member of the Senate or the House of
Representatives, would cause him to be
disqualified for election as a member;
(c) he ceases to be a citizen of Nigeria;
(d) he becomes President, Vice-President,
Governor, Deputy Governor or a Minister of the
Government of the Federation or a Commissioner
of the Government of a State or a Special
Adviser.
(e) save as otherwise prescribed by this
Constitution, he becomes a member of a
commission or other body established by this
Constitution or by any other law.
(f) without just cause he is absent from meetings
of the House of which he is a member for a
period amounting in the aggregate to more than
one-third of the total number of days during
which the House meets in any one year;
(g) being a person whose election to the House
was sponsored by a political party, he becomes a
member of another political party

This applies to the Legislature and not the Executive arm of government.