A suit has been filed at the Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking to declare the Delta North Senatorial seat vacant following Senator Ned Nwoko’s defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The case was brought forward by a constituent and PDP member, Marvis Ossai, who is asking the court to order the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a bye-election within 60 days of judgment.
Senator Nwoko, INEC, PDP, and the Senate have been listed as defendants in the legal action.
The plaintiff, in his submission to the court, requested several reliefs, including:
“An order of this Honourable Court, directing the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC– the 2nd Defendant – to conduct a bye-election into the Delta North Senatorial District of the Nigerian Senate within sixty (60) days from the date of the delivery of Judgement herein.”
“An order of this Honourable Court declaring vacant the seat of Ned Munir Nwoko and cancelling his Certificate of Return issued to him by the Independent National Electoral Commission.”
“An order of this Honourable Court mandating the 1st Defendant, Nwoko, to refund into the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation, forthwith, all the salaries, emoluments and allowances received by him since January 2025 until the date of the final judgement in this matter.”
“An order disqualifying the 1st Defendant from standing election into any elective post under the amended 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria until and unless he complies with every term of the judgement in this suit.”
“An order mandating the 4th Defendant (Senate) to immediately give effect to the judgement of this Honourable Court.”
According to a five-paragraph affidavit deposed to by one Ibrahim Isa, the plaintiff informed the court that Senator Nwoko resigned from the PDP on January 30, despite being elected on the party’s platform to serve until 2027.
The plaintiff, a resident of Oshimili North Local Government Area in Delta North, argued that Nwoko’s continued tenure in the Senate after defecting violated constitutional provisions.
“That since when the 1st Defendant decamped from the PDP up to the present moment of initiating the instant suit, there is never any division in the National Leadership of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).”
“That the ideology of the 1st Defendant’s new party, All Progressives Congress (APC), to which the 1st Defendant now fully subscribes, does not bear any similarity or represent the political philosophy of the People’s Democratic Party [which is the basis upon which the Plaintiff resolved to cast his vote for and elected the Defendant in 2023.”
“That the conduct of the Defendant in defecting from the People’s Democratic Party to All Progressives Congress has dealt a major blow to the fortunes of the Plaintiff’s Party, the People’s Democratic Party.”
“That the conduct of the 1st Defendant being challenged herein if not condemned and upturned by this Honourable Court will continue to encourage political harlotry, legislative rascality and destroys the reasons for the laws made to regulate the defection of National Assembly Members by the Constitution of Nigeria itself.”
“That the continuous stay of the 1st Defendant at the Federal Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria does no longer represent the Plaintiff’s interest or that of thousands of other members of our constituency who voted him in on the basis of our faith in our Party’s manifesto which they believed the 1st Defendant was capable of representing in the Federal Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
“That the Defendant is now representing adverse interests of the people who fought the Plaintiff’s party tooth and nail [in the year 2023] to forestall the emergence of the 1st Defendant as the Member Representing DELTA NORTH SENATORIAL DISTRICT Federal Constituency on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party, (PDP).”
“That time is of the greatest essence in the instant application. It will be in the interest of justice for this Honourable Court to grant the prayers contained on the face of this Originating Summons.”
As at the time of filing this report, the case has not been assigned to a judge for hearing.
