Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara has raised concerns over the neutrality of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), questioning its failure to enforce constitutional provisions regarding political defections.
Fubara accused INEC, led by Professor Mahmood Yakubu, of selectively applying the law, allowing lawmakers who defect from the party on whose platform they were elected to retain their seats.
Fubara was represented by former Rivers State Deputy Governor Tele Ikuru, as a special guest at the sixth annual Freedom Online lecture, themed “Nigeria’s Socio-Political Challenges: Whose Fault, the Leaders or the Led?” at the Sheraton Hotel in Lagos.
“The Independent National Electoral Commission has failed to uphold the law concerning political defections. According to the constitution, lawmakers who defect from the party on whose platform they were elected should lose their seats. However, INEC has been selective in enforcing this rule, raising questions about its neutrality. When institutions fail to do the needful, the rule of law is weakened, and democracy suffers,” Fubara said.
His comments come amid an ongoing political crisis in Rivers State, where 27 lawmakers, loyal to former Governor Nyesom Wike, defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2023. Their defection deepened the rift between Fubara and Wike, further dividing the Rivers State House of Assembly.
While 27 lawmakers switched allegiance to the APC, four lawmakers remained loyal to Governor Fubara, creating a faction within the state legislature.
Following the defection, Fubara’s allies called on INEC to declare the seats of the defected lawmakers vacant and conduct by-elections to replace them.
However, INEC refused to act, stating that the matter was before the court.