By Ojo Jeremiah Oladipupo (Siwes student, Efon Poly)
The International Society for Social Justice and Human Rights is prepared to engage in a legal showdown with the 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly who recently switched to the All Progressives Congress.
Deeming the defection unconstitutional, the organization insists that it breaches the trust of the people who elected them under the Peoples Democratic Party.
Highlighting the lawmakers’ departure from their original party as a betrayal of the electorate’s trust, the group condemns their continuation under a different manifesto as criminal.
The crisis within the State House of Assembly prompted the defection, with the lawmakers citing division within the state PDP.
Despite claims that the lawmakers were loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, who had strained relations with the State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, the group’s chancellor, Chief Jackson Omenazu, warns that their failure to adhere to constitutional provisions will be considered unlawful.
The organization intends to voice its protest, insisting that the political turmoil threatens to manipulate the people’s mandate.
Chief Omenazu urges the APC-led Federal Government to distance itself from benefiting from what he terms crime and the criminal boldness of some Nigerians.
Emphasizing the commitment to upholding constitutional authority, the group asserts that the defected parliamentarians in Rivers State have lost their mandate and calls for the immediate vacation of their parliamentary seats.
Chief Omenazu issues a stern warning, cautioning the lawmakers that non-compliance could lead to a protracted legal battle between the organization and the defectors.
