Abia PDP Lawmakers Spit Fire, Set For Showdown With LP Over Majority Seat In State Assembly

Lawmakers elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Abia State House of Assembly has given the Labour Party-led legislative House 90 days ultimatum to revert to the provisions of the Harmonized Standing Orders (Rules of the Abia State House of Assembly).

The lawmakers say as the party with the majority elected members of the Eight House of Assembly, it should produce/occupy the Majority Leader, Deputy Majority Leader, Chief Whip and Deputy Chief Whip positions, faulting the Labour Party for producing the Majority leader despite being a minority party.

In the three-month Pre-Action Notice addressed to the clerk, ABHA Umuahia and signed by Counsel to the PDP elected members, Igwe Ogwo Esq; they will recover the Majority Leadership positions.

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The document further revealed that the Speaker, Abia State House of Assembly, disregarded the names of the nominated House of Assembly members of the PDP sent to him by the Chairman of PDP, Abia State Chapter, Rt. Hon. Alwell Asiforo Okere read out the names that were sent to him by the Labour Party (LP) that has the minority members in the Eighth House of Assembly.

The document reads thus in parts: “This is an utter breach and violation of the extant and crystally clear provisions of Order 8, Rule 42(1), 43(1), and 45(1) of the Harmonized Standing Orders (Rules of the Abia State House of Assembly) and an affront to our democratic tenets, spirit and the law.

They want to Speaker to revert to the order of the House which allows the majority party to occupy the Majority Leader’s position.

They also disclosed that failure, refusal or neglect to comply with the legal Pre-Action Notice, they would invite the Honourable Court to interpret the legal import purport of the provisions of the already referred Harmonized Standing Orders (Rules of the Abia State House of Assembly) as to the meaning of: “…he shall be a member nominated from the party with the highest number of members in the House”.

They maintained that the following relief shall also be sought in addition:

“A declaration that PDP is the majority party in the ABHA as presently constituted.

“A declaration that the Respondent cannot validly be nominated and/or appoint a member of the ABHA who is not a member of the PDP as the Majority Leader of the ABHA.

“A declaration that only a member of the majority party (PDP) can be nominated and appointed as the Majority Leader of the ABHA.

“A declaration that only a member of the majority party (PDP) can be nominated and appointed as the Deputy Majority Leader of the ABHA.

“A declaration that only a member of the majority party (PDP) can be nominated and appointed as the Chief Whip of the ABHA.

“A declaration that only a member of the majority party (PDP) can be nominated and appointed as the Deputy Chief Whip of the ABHA.

“A declaration that the purported nomination and/or appointment of the Minority members as Majority Leader, Deputy Majority Leader, Chief Whip and Deputy Chief Whip of ABHA on 30th Day of June 2023 is unconstitutional, invalid, null and void and constitutes a breach of the ABHA”.

Recall that 11 PDP members of ABHA have staged severally walkouts from plenary; protesting the nomination and appointment of minority members of ABHA into Majority Leadership positions of the ABHA.

The Leader of the PDP caucus of the ABHA and the member representing Obingwa-East State Constituency, Hon. Solomon Akpulonu with 10 other PDP members had in several fora, vehemently resisted the development and called for a reversion as enshrined in Harmonized Standing Orders (Rules of the Abia State House of Assembly).