PDP Submits Umahi’s Replacement To INEC, Declares Igariwe New Ebonyi Governor

Following a court order that Governor David Umahi and his deputy immediately vacate the position of Governor of Ebonyi State, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has submitted the names of Iduma Igariwe as the new Governor and Fred Udogwu as his Deputy.

On Tuesday, our reporter reported that a Federal High Court in Abuja had ruled that Governor Dave Umahi and his deputy, Dr Kelechi Igwe, defecting from the PDP to the APC was illegal.

In his ruling, Justice Inyang Ekwo stated that the votes that elected Umahi as governor belonged to the party and could not be transferred to another.

The court made the ruling in a case brought by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seeking the removal of Umahi and Igwe from office.

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While Umahi chastised the judge and insisted on remaining the state governor at a press conference in Abakaliki, the PDP National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, said the party had forwarded Umahi and Igwe’s replacements to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Meanwhile, the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that the central issue in the case was the third defendant’s (governor) and fourth defendant’s (deputy governor) defection from the PDP to the APC.

The third and fourth defendants’ declarations, according to the judge, did not address the issue of defection properly and directly, instead relying on general denial and affidavit evidence.

The third and fourth defendants’ depositions in their counter-affidavit were “evasive and insufficient” to competently challenge the plaintiff’s originating process, according to Justice Ekwo.

He claimed that Section 308 of the Constitution’s “immunity clause” is not absolute. Section 308 is a constitutional fortress,” and not for political reasons.

According to the court, Umahi and Igwe did not refute the deposition that all votes cast in an election belonged to a single political party.

There was enough evidence, according to Justice Ekwo, that the second defendant (the APC) ran its own candidates in the Ebonyi State governorship election in March 2019.

“It should be noted that the constitution does not take the issue of defection lightly,” he said. The plaintiff’s votes and victory on March 9, 2019, cannot be transferred to the APC by the third and fourth defendants.

“The PDP holds the governor’s and deputy governor’s offices in Ebonyi State. The court declared that Umahi and Igwe’s only option is to vacate office and wait until the next election to run on the platform of their new party.

As a result, the court determined that, under Nigeria’s democratic system, the plaintiff received a majority of votes during the election and was entitled to continue to do so until the end of the term of office for which the election was held.

As a result, the court barred Umahi and Igwe from acting as governor and deputy governor of Ebonyi State in the future.

On the same grounds that the governor was removed, the judge sacked 15 members of the state House of Assembly who defected from the PDP to the APC.