On Wednesday, members from the largest opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) got into heated argument over Delta North Senator Ned Nwoko’s decision to defect from the PDP to the APC.
PDP senators stand against Nwoko’s defection, claiming that the party was not in crisis and that his action was thus illegitimate, what was first anticipated to be a routine plenary session swiftly turned into intense arguments.
Senate Minority Leader Abba Moro brought up a constitutional point of order to begin the debate, asking if there was a split within the PDP’s National Working Committee (NWC) to support Nwoko’s defection.
Moro got into a heated argument with Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, and Deputy Senate President Jibril Barau on the constitutional justification for party switching.
However, Barau backed Nwoko’s decision to leave, stating that parliamentarians are permitted to leave their political party if there is internal strife within it under the Nigerian Constitution.
Everyone in the nation is aware of the division. “You have the Bala Mohammed faction and the Wike faction,” Barau claimed.
“I want to say at this point that the PDP is a law-abiding institution,” Moro said in response to Barau’s assertion.
Until the Supreme Court rules differently, the PDP will follow the Court of Appeal’s decision regarding the party’s secretaryship.
“What does the Supreme Court say?” Senate President Akpabio interrupted.
The Senate could not act as a court in deciding party divisions, Akpabio said in his final decision, dismissing the PDP’s arguments by declaring Moro out of order and upholding Nwoko’s defection to the Aapc, he permitted legislative processes to begin.