A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has sacked a member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Philip Agbese, representing Ado/Ogbadibo/Okpokwu Federal Constituency of Benue State, for defecting from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) without any justifiable reason.
Delivering judgment on Thursday October 30th, the court ruled that the lawmaker’s defection contravened the provisions of Section 68(1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution, which mandates that any lawmaker who defects from the political party on whose platform they were elected must vacate their seat, except where a division exists within that party.
Justice Inyang Ekwo held that the PDP did not experience any such division at the time of Agbese’s defection and, therefore, his move to the APC was unconstitutional and invalid. The court consequently ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw his Certificate of Return and issue a new one to the PDP candidate who came second in the party’s primary.
The ruling has generated mixed reactions across Benue political circles. PDP officials hailed the verdict as a “victory for democracy and the rule of law,” while APC loyalists described it as a “judicial ambush” aimed at weakening the party’s legislative presence.
Legal analysts note that the decision reinforces the long-standing constitutional position that elected officials cannot switch parties at will, a recurring controversy in Nigeria’s political landscape.
