The Leader of the Nigerian Senate, Opeyemi Bamidele, has stated that the seat of Abia South senator, Enyinnaya Abaribe, should be declared vacant if he is no longer a member of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).
Bamidele made the remark on Thursday during plenary at the Nigerian Senate while reacting to the defection of Abaribe and eight other senators to the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Earlier reports indicated that at least nine senators from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), and APGA had defected to the ADC, marking a significant shift in the composition of political parties within the upper legislative chamber.
Reacting to the development, Bamidele argued that Abaribe’s situation raised constitutional concerns regarding his continued membership in the Senate if he had indeed left the political party under which he was elected.
“I’m not just a lawyer; by the grace of God, I’m a life bencher. I know this law and I know what I’m talking about. Section 68(1b) had envisaged the situation that Senator Abaribe is in today,” Bamidele said during the plenary.
He explained that the constitutional provision addresses circumstances where a legislator ceases to belong to the political party that sponsored their election, which could render them ineligible to retain their seat.
According to him, the law clearly outlines conditions under which a legislator’s seat may be declared vacant if such a situation arises.
Bamidele, however, suggested that Abaribe could still reconsider his decision, urging him to withdraw his letter of defection in order to avoid further complications.
“Again, I still say it, let us give Senator Abaribe an opportunity to withdraw his letter, and then we continue to see how we can manage having him in this chamber,” he said.
The Senate Leader further argued that Abaribe’s current status could create a constitutional anomaly if he no longer belongs to any recognised political party within the chamber.
“Today, he’s not a member of any political party. He’s not part of the majority, he’s not part of the minority side, unless we are going to create a third aisle for people who don’t belong to either the majority or the minority, which the constitution has said must not happen,” Bamidele added.
