Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara has criticized
the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for failing to uphold
constitutional provisions on political defections.
He accused INEC, led by Professor Mahmood Yakubu, of
selectively enforcing the law, allowing defecting lawmakers to retain their
seats despite constitutional stipulations.
Speaking through former Deputy Governor Tele Ikuru at
the sixth annual Freedom Online lecture in Lagos, Fubara warned that
institutional failures erode democracy.
His remarks come amid a deepening crisis in Rivers
State, where 27 lawmakers defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to
the All Progressives Congress (APC), aligning with former Governor Nyesom Wike.
Meanwhile, four lawmakers remain loyal to Fubara,
intensifying the Assembly’s factional divide.
Fubara’s allies have urged INEC to declare the
defectors’ seats vacant and conduct by-elections, but the commission has
refused, citing ongoing legal proceedings.
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