Ayade panics as Court shifts judgement on defection sack to sack to April 6

Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State may be having panic as a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Friday shifted judgement on the suit by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the sack of the governor and the deputy governor from office for defecting to the All Progressives Congress (APC) with the PDP mandate. The PDP approached the court for an order to declare the seat of the Cross River State Governor, Ben Ayade, and Deputy Governor, Ivara Esu, vacant, and enable PDP to reclaim its mandate.

Justice Taiwo Taiwo had formally fixed judgment ion the suit for Friday but shifted the judgement to April 6.

Justice Taiwo had in an earlier judgement on Monday sacked 20 lawmakers in the Cross River State who defected to the APC with the PDP mandate. The sacked lawmakers comprised of two members of the House of Representatives and 18 members of the Cross River State House of Assembly.

The PDP had demanded the court to sack both Ayade and Esu, arguing that having abandoned the political party that sponsored their re-election, they ought to vacate their respective offices.

The PDP also sought a declaration that votes at the election and other elections were won by political parties, and not the candidate or the candidates sponsored at the election by the political parties.

The party cited Section 221 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), the democratic system of governance operated in Nigeria in its argument.

The PDP further urged the court to order the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately receive the names of the party’s candidates to replace Ayade and Esu. It argued that “this became necessary to utilise the lawful votes cast in favour of the party.”

The PDP demanded that in the alternative, the court should order the INEC to hold a governorship election in Cross River State, in accordance with Section 177 of the Constitution.