The Appeal Court returns back to the (largely) “stable” settled law: once the electoral season is over , removing a governor cannot happen because he/she has changed party. There is nothing in the electoral law or the Constitution that supports the thesis that because you changed party, you lose the governorship in Nigeria.
The Appeal Court sitting in Enugu has upheld the ruling of Ebonyi State High Court which held that the Ebonyi State governor Dave Umahi and his deputy, Kelechi Igwe, did not violate any section of the constitution when they defected from People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC).
The duo has been under intense legal battle with aggrieved members of both APC and PDP over their defection. The Plaintiffs are the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Ebonyi State, in the 2019 Governorship election, Senator Sonni Ogbuoji and his Deputy, Chief Justin Ogbodo Mbam.
Because a governor is “protected” from many legal battles, post electoral calendar, no court can remove him or her easily. Only impeachment, resignation or death can.
That was my position when this news broke that a Federal Court had fired Ebonyi State governor Umahi; the Appeal Court is 100% correct. This does not mean that I like how politicians with zero core principles change parties. Yet, we all agree that the Court must NOT legislate from the bench; the National Assembly can ban party flipping if that is what the country wants.
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Governor Umahi’s Defection is Immoral But Not Unconstitutional in Nigeria – Appeal Court Rules
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