The Pro- Siminalayi Fubara Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Victor Oko-Jumbo, has made a passionate appeal to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct bye-elections to fill the 27 vacant seats in the State House of Assembly.
The call comes after the speaker claimed that a significant legal hurdle that previously prevented INEC from conducting the bye-elections has been removed.
Addressing a press conference in Port Harcourt on Friday, November 1, 2024, Oko-Jumbo recounted the events leading to the vacant seats.
He explained that Martin Amaewhule and 26 other lawmakers defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on December 11, 2023, without any justifiable cause.
This defection, he said, followed their failed attempt to impeach Governor Siminalayi Fubara on October 30, 2023.
The Speaker highlighted that Amaewhule and others filed a suit (FHC/ABJ/CS/1681/2023) against INEC and four others on December 13, 2023.
He said they(Amaewhule and co), secured an interlocutory injunction restraining INEC from conducting bye-elections to fill the vacant seats.
However, despite initiating the lawsuit, Amaewhule and others failed to diligently prosecute it, leading to its eventual striking out on October 30, 2024.
With the legal impediment now removed, Oko-Jumbo urged INEC to conduct the bye-elections without delay.
He emphasized the need to restore stability and prevent distractions caused by the vacant seats, which have been unrepresented for an extended period.
“The only impediment to INEC conducting a bye-election to fill the 27 vacant seats in the Rivers State House of Assembly was the order of Interlocutory Injunction restraining INEC from conducting a bye-election. Now that Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1681/2023 has been struck out, the order of Interlocutory Injunction is also spent,” Oko-Jumbo declared.
Oko-Jumbo reiterated his commitment to ensuring the democratic process is upheld and the people’s representation is restored.
He called on INEC to take immediate action and conduct the bye-elections to fill the vacant seats.