By Amuda Dan Sulaiman Fab
A concerned constituent of Yagba Federal Constituency and Kogi State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Kingsley Femi Fanwo, has dismissed a petition reportedly sent to the National Assembly seeking to declare the seat of the member representing Yagba Federal Constituency, Rt. Hon. Leke Abejide, vacant over alleged expulsion from the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
In a statement issued on Friday, Fanwo, writing in his personal capacity as a bonafide indigene of Yagba, described the petition as “laughable and constitutionally unfounded,” insisting that those behind the move lack basic understanding of constitutional provisions guiding the removal of a lawmaker.
Fanwo said the petitioners were attempting to mislead the public and the National Assembly by suggesting that expulsion from a political party automatically translates to loss of mandate.
“When I read the news about a petition sent to the National Assembly, seeking to declare the seat of Hon. Leke Abejide vacant on the grounds of a purported expulsion by the ADC, I laughed,” he stated.
“Such an action shows that those people have too little or no knowledge of the constitutional provisions relating to the declaration of seats vacant.”
He argued that expulsion is not a valid constitutional basis for declaring a legislative seat vacant, noting that the law only recognizes defection under specified conditions as grounds for such action.
“When has expulsion become a ground for declaring a seat vacant? So any party who wants their representative out can just expel such a person and his seat will be declared vacant? Wonderful,” Fanwo remarked.
Describing the ADC as a party plagued by leadership crises, he expressed confidence that Abejide, whom he referred to as a “serial winner,” would not be distracted by what he termed “a macabre dance lacking rhythm.”
Fanwo maintained that the people of Yagba remain solidly behind Abejide.
“We are okay with Leke. They should stop deceiving themselves,” he concluded.
The petition, reportedly submitted by factions within the ADC, requests the National Assembly to take action on the lawmaker’s seat, a development that has sparked widespread reactions among political observers in Kogi State.
Rt. Hon. Leke Abejide, popularly known as Elder, currently serves in the House of Representatives and was the ADC governorship candidate in the 2023 Kogi State governorship election.
