A federal high court in Abuja has dismissed a suit seeking to replace 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly loyal to an ex-governor of the state Nyesom Wike.
Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor, Wike have been at loggerheads over the control of political structure in state.
The crisis between the duo has caused political tension in Rivers state, DAILY GIST reports.
The governor has repeatedly insisted that the lawmakers loyal to the FCT minister are no longer members of the Rivers house of assembly following their defection
However, the suit seeking to replace the 27 lawmakers on account of their alleged defection from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) was on Friday thrown out on various grounds.
Among others, Justice Peter Lifu who delivered the judgment held that the suit instituted by the Action People’s Party APP was statute barred having not been filed within 14 days allowed by law.
While the defection was said to have been carried out in December last year, the case was filed on July 12, a period of 8 months after the cause of action emanated.
Besides, Justice Lifu said that the case was a gross abuse of court process on the ground that several suits on the alleged defection of the same 27 lawmakers had been adjudicated upon by the federal high court.
The Judge who quoted the previous judgments of the federal high court said that the request for replacement of the lawmakers had earlier been rejected due to lack of sufficient evidence to establish the defection of the legislators.
He specifically recalled the judgment of Justice James Omotosho of the federal high court in Abuja delivered in July this year where the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC was restrained from declaring the seats of the lawmakers vacant and from conducting any fresh election to replace them.
Justice Lifu said that since the judgment has not been set aside and not appealed against, it remains binding with the force of law as far as the issue of defection is concerned for the 27 legislators.
He said that it would amount to a display of judicial rascality for him to sit as an appeal court in the judgment of the same court.
The Judge subsequently dismissed the suit on the three major grounds.
