Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, has dismissed a suit instituted against the 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly loyal to the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
The suit seeking to replace the 27 lawmakers on account of their alleged defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) was yesterday thrown out on various grounds.
Justice Lifu, who delivered the judgment, held that the suit instituted by the Action Peoples Party (APP) was statute barred, having not been filed within the 14 days allowed by law.
While the defection was said to have been carried out in December last year, the APP filed the case on July 12, eight months after the cause of action emanated.
Besides, Justice Lifu said the case was a gross abuse of court process on the ground that several suits on the alleged defection of the same lawmakers had been adjudicated upon by the Federal High Court.
The judge who quoted the previous judgments of the High Court said the request for their replacement had earlier been rejected due to lack of sufficient evidence to establish the defection.
He specifically recalled the judgment of Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja delivered in July where INEC was restrained from declaring their seats vacant and conducting any fresh election to replace them.
Justice Lifu said since the judgment had not been set aside and not appealed against, it remained binding with the force of law as far as the issue of defection is concerned.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Opposition Lawmakers Coalition has rejected the judgement declaring the decampment of the lawmakers as a pre-election issue.
They said the judgement is an assault on constitutional democracy and Rt. Hon. Oko Jumbo remained the valid speaker of Rivers State House of Assembly based on existing High Court judgements and rulings.
The opposition coalition lawmakers, reacting at a world press conference by their spokesman, Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, stated that the lawmakers’ seats remained vacant because in line with the law they defected to APC and are no longer members of the PDP and there are many valid rulings of the High Court that restrained them from parading as lawmakers and declaring Oko Jumbo as the valid speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly. Ikenga said Oko Jumbo remained the speaker and they would appeal the ruling.
