Edo Assembly crisis: PDP asks INEC to withdraw Certificate of Return of 14 members-elect
Posted by Osagie Otabor, Bénin | 22 December 2019 | 1,018 times
•INEC national chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu
The
Peoples Democratic Party in Edo State has asked the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw Certificate of Return from 14
members-elect in the Edo State House of Assembly whose seats were recently
declared vacant.
It said
the refusal/neglect by the members-elect to subscribe to the Oath of
Membership/Allegiance with respect to the affected constituencies throughout
the First Session and First Quarters of the 7th Assembly of Edo State amounted
to abdication of office
The PDP
said the right thing for INEC to do was to withdraw the affected members’
certificate of return since they have failed or neglected to seat in the House
they were elected into.
This
was contained in a letter addressed to Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmoud
Yakubu and signed by Chikaodinaka Adindu on behalf of the PDP and its
candidates for the House of Assembly election.
The
PDP, however, kicked against the call for fresh elections into the
constituencies by Speaker Frank Okiye.
It said
state resources should not be wasted in conducting fresh elections where there
are 1st runners up in the concluded elections and more so where the affected
dembers-elect did not subscribed to the Oath of Membership/Allegiance.
According
to the letter, “The Doctrine of Necessity should be invoked to issue
certificate of return to the 1st Runner up in the election in order to save
their constituencies from undue suffering and neglect having performed their
civic responsibility of voting only to be denied the dividend of democracy.
“We are
by this letter demanding/requesting you and your Commission (INEC), to use your
good offices to issue to our Clients, Certificate of Return within the next 7
days of the receipt of this letter.
“That
failure to accede to request in the interest of Justice and Equity as clearly
communicated by this letter within the time limited above, we shall be left
with no other option than to carry-out the full instructions of our Clients by
instituting an action in court of law.
“We
look forward to hearing from you within the next 7 days.” (The Nation)
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