OPERATIVES of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) shot teargas canisters on Tuesday, January 23 to disperse the 16 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members of the Plateau State House of Assembly, who were sacked by the Court of Appeal.
The policemen, along with other security operatives, surrounded the Government House to prevent the lawmakers from attending the plenary session as planned.
However, the lawmakers have vowed not to vacate the premises until they were allowed to attend the plenary session despite a subsisting court ruling nullifying their elections.
In reaction, the All Progressives Congress (APC), which benefited from the appellate court judgment, insisted that the lawmakers remained sacked and their plan to resume was an “invitation to anarchy and a threat to democracy.”
The Court of Appeal in Abuja had in November last year sacked all the 16 PDP members of the Assembly on the grounds that the party had no structure to nominate them as candidates.
But the 16 lawmakers, led by a former majority leader, Yobo Ishaku, said since the Supreme Court, which upheld the election of Governor Caleb Mutfwang on the same issue, had ruled that the PDP had a valid structure to nominate them as candidates, the verdict of the Court of Appeal sacking them as lawmakers had become a nullity.
“We are satisfied with the position of the Speaker and at the right time, we will know who the rightful owners of those vacant seats are,” Ishaku stated.
Spokesman of the APC in the state, Mr. Sylvanus Namang, accused the PDP lawmakers of overheating the system with their presence at the resumption of plenary, which he said was unnecessary.
Namang said: “We are not under any impression that our 16 members who have their Certificate of Return will attend any plenary today, being Tuesday.
“As a law-abiding party, we know that it is only the eight recognised members that were supposed to sit today. Then after that, they will admit our 16 members who have their Certificate of Return.
“So, all the 16 sacked PDP members invading the House today is very unnecessary and unfortunate. They are only resorting to self-help and overheating the system and this will be more injurious to the PDP government in Plateau State.
“I think this rascality has to stop, because the desperation will not take us anywhere. We are law-abiding citizens and nobody owns the state more than any other.”
The lawmakers had arrived at the Rayfield Old Government House in Jos on Tuesday morning with their supporters to attend plenary, but they were stopped from going into the chambers.
However, the eight lawmakers (seven APC members and one YPP member) who were not affected by the Court of Appeal Court judgment, were allowed into the legislative chambers.
Addressing journalists after emerging from the chamber, Speaker of the Assembly, Mr. Gabriel Dewan, said: “As you will recall, on November 22, 2023, the Plateau State House of Assembly went into recess and adjourned to resume on January 23, 2024. And today, as you can see, we are back to resume our legislative duties officially.
“I pray God Almighty will take control within the new year and we are ready to give the government of President Bola Tinubu and the Executive Governor of Plateau State all the needed legislative support.”
On whether the House would allow the 16 sacked PDP lawmakers to resume their duties or swear in those who were declared winners by the Court of Appeal to take over from them, Dewan said: “I’m not a law interpreter. For now, we are lawmakers, but I’m in receipt of a court process that regards the issue.
“At the moment, we have 16 vacancies in the House and there are court processes over this. As I’m talking to you, we have 32 members claiming the 16 vacancies in the Assembly.
“And like I said, we are lawmakers and not law interpreters. So, we allow the institution saddled with the responsibility of interpretation to interpret the law. So, in due course, we will feed the public with the next line of action, but for now, we have only eight House members until the determination of the court process.”
