Defection: House of Reps stands by Tambuwal

 

Lawmakers are standing firm by House of Representatives Speaker Aminu Tambuwal over his defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

He will not quit his seat, the House said, adding that those who are pushing for that are ignorant of the law.

A statement issued yesterday and signed by the Deputy Chairman, Media & Public Affairs, Victor Afam Ogene, under the title “You can’t regulate uur procedure from outside” reads:

“Barely 24 hours after Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, CFR, Speaker of the House of Representatives, announced a switch of party allegiance from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), several individuals, party chieftains and groups have gone on a frenzy, dishing out varied interpretations to the decision.

“In the main, many of these commentators, rather than correctly stating what the true position of the law and
the House rules are, take delight in advertising ignorance of both, with some even advocating a recourse to anarchy as a way of achieving what they imagine ought to be the ‘solution’ to the issue.

“Following several inquiries by, especially journalists and some members of the public, it is easy to narrow the concerns to two key issues. One, whether Speaker Tambuwal ought to vacate his seat as Representative of Kebbe/ Tambuwal Federal Constituency, Sokoto State, by virtue of section 68 (1) (g), of the 1999 Constitution, as amended; and two, if he shouldn’t step down as Speaker, having defected from the majority party in the House to a minority platform.

“On the first issue, it is common knowledge that following the defection of 37 members of the House in December 2013, from the PDP to APC, there has been multiple court cases on the matter, thus rendering it subjudice to discuss any likely outcome. Everyone is thus enjoined to await final judicial pronouncement on the issue of defection, which has afflicted virtually all political parties in the land.

“Concerning calls for Mr. Speaker to step down from the position which his colleagues freely elected him to on June 6, 2011, we wish to reaffirm – even with the pains of almost sounding monotonous – that the Speakership of the House of Representatives, or indeed, any other national elective position, belongs to the generality of Nigerians, and not the political platforms upon which such leaders emerge.

“While the case of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who as a sitting Vice President moved to another political party – and did not get judicial reprobation for the act – is still fresh in our memories, the clear provisions of Section 50(1) (b) of the Nigerian Constitution easily settles the worries regarding the continued Speakership of Rt. Hon. Tambuwal. ‘There shall be a Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives who shall be elected by the members of that House from among themselves”, the above quoted portion of the constitution stipulates. It would, therefore, amount to an affront on members’ privilege to question their constitutionally-guaranteed right to freely elect their leader.

“Additionally, Order 1, Rule 1 (2) of the Standing Orders of the House of Representatives states: ‘In all cases not provided for hereinafter, or by sectional or other orders, precedents or practices of the House, the House shall by resolution regulate its procedure’.

“It is in the light of the foregoing that the House wishes to appeal to those who seek to ‘regulate its procedure’ from outside its hallowed chambers to have a rethink, as the nation’s Constitution, the Standing Orders of the House and precedent – as in the Speakership of the late Rt. Hon. Edwin Ume-Ezeoke in the Second Republic on a minority platform – have all provided answers to what would have otherwise been a knotty political issue.”

The PDP leadership met with the PDP Caucus in the house on Tuesday. It asked Tambuwal to resign his position.

PDP spokesman Olisa Metuh said: “The National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has met with PDP leaders in the House of Representatives concerning the defection of the Speaker, His Excellency, Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal to the APC.

“After a thorough consideration of the matter, the NWC came to a conclusion that the Hon. Speaker, as a responsible elected officer, knows full well what is needful and honourable of him since his new party is in the minority.”