You’re enemies of democracy, PDP slams defecting Rivers lawmakers

The Peoples Democratic Party has condemned the defection of 17 Rivers State lawmakers to the All Progressives Congress, describing their motion as reckless and an act of betrayal carried out at a crucial second for the state’s democracy.

PDP Nationwide Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, in an interview with Saturday PidomNigeria, mentioned the lawmakers had portrayed themselves as “enemies of democracy by abandoning the platform by which they had been elected.”

He accused them of undermining the mandate of Rivers individuals and destabilising the legislature for partisan achieve.

Seventeen members of the Rivers State Home of Meeting, led by the Speaker, Martin Amaewhule, dumped the PDP for APC on Friday throughout a plenary, attributing the transfer to what he described as a “division” inside the PDP.

He mentioned, “Distinguished colleagues, APC is my new occasion. I’ll do all that’s wanted to be carried out in direction of making certain that the occasion card of the APC is issued to me very quickly. However as I communicate at present, I’m a member of the APC. I’m pleased to be a member of APC in order that we are able to be part of forces with Mr President. Mr President is doing a lot for this nation.

“As of at present, even the nationwide headquarters of the PDP just isn’t functioning on account of this division. There are two factions, and the structure is evident that when there’s a division in any political occasion, when the occasion is split, members together with Meeting members who not have hope can go away the occasion with none penalties.

“That’s the reason I needed to make this clear, that the inspiration for this defection is the structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Nevertheless, Ememobong mentioned there was nothing stunning in regards to the improvement, noting that they merely moved from APC again to APC.

He acknowledged, “It is a case of re-defection; that they had beforehand defected then later denied it. The members of the Rivers State Home of Meeting will go down in historical past as enemies of democracy and people who made a mockery of the legislature.

“So, the simplest strategy to describe their motion is a defection from APC to APC.”

On the Friday plenary, the Home expressed concern over Fubara’s delay in submitting the checklist of commissioners’ nominees for screening, with the Speaker calling it a breach of the structure. The Home adjourned plenary to the twenty sixth of January, 2026.

A press release later issued by the media aide to the Speaker, Martins Wachukwu, mentioned the Home has reaffirmed its decision to undertake the auditorium of the legislative quarters as its hallowed chamber.

The assertion was titled, “Rivers Meeting Reaffirms Decision on the Adoption of Meeting Quarters Auditorium as Chamber,” with a sub-title, “As 17 Members of the Home Defect to the APC.”

“At its thirty ninth Legislative Sitting of the third Session of the Tenth Meeting, the Rivers State Home of Meeting, on Friday, by a Movement, reaffirmed its earlier decision made on the 14th of December, 2023, which adopted the auditorium on the State Home of Meeting quarters as its hallowed Chamber to conduct legislative companies,” it acknowledged.

Shifting the movement for the reaffirmation, Deputy Majority Chief of the Home, Linda Somiari-Stewart, averred that part 101 of the Structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria empowers the Home to control its personal procedures, together with the place to carry its sittings for the nice governance of the state.

He prayed the Home to resolve, amongst others, the reaffirmation of the present hallowed Chamber located on the Meeting quarters because the reliable and lawful Chamber for the conduct of legislative companies for the lifetime of the Tenth Meeting of the State.

In keeping with the assertion, members commented in help of the movement and urged the Home to mandate the Clerk to proceed to supply all administrative help to the Home within the present hallowed Chamber.

Talking on the movement, Amaewhule acknowledged that what makes an Meeting is the individuals and never the constructing, calling on all related safety businesses to proceed to supply safety for the Meeting quarters to allow the Home carry out its constitutional duties.

The assertion added, “Nonetheless on Friday, 17 members of the Home who had been elected into the Home below the umbrella of the Peoples’ Democratic Party, defected to the APC.

“The explanation given for the defection, as individually affirmed, was predicated on the division within the occasion on the nationwide degree, which has made the way forward for the occasion hazy and nebulous.”

“Those that defected to the All Progressives Congress embrace the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Martin Chike Amaewhule; the Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon. Dumle Maol; the Majority Chief, Hon. Main Jack; the Deputy Majority Chief, Hon. Linda Somiari-Stewart; the Chief Whip, Hon. Frankline Nwabuchi; and the Deputy Whip, Hon. Ofiks Kabang. Others are Hon. Peter Abbey, Hon. Sensible Adoki, Hon. Igwe Aforji, Hon. Arnold Davids, Hon. Enemi George, Hon. Tekenari Granville, Hon. Christian Nwankwo, Hon. Gerald Oforji, Hon. Azeru Opara, Hon. Lolo Opuende, and Hon. Solomon Wami.”