More reactions have continued to trail the defection of Senator Joshua Dariye from the PDP to the ruling APC, with the PDP in his senatorial district, on Monday calling on the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, to declare the senator’s seat vacant and urging the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to issue a certificate of return to the Hon. Alexander Molwus who came second during the party’s primary election.
The lawmaker representing Plateau central at the upper chamber of the National Assembly had last month announced his official defection from the PDP to the ruling APC.
But reacting at the party’s secretariat in Jos, the PDP vice chairman, Plateau Central Senatorial District, Hon. Benedict Shignuhul, in company of all LGA and Ward Chairman from the 5 councils and 66 wards that make up the zone, which Senator Dariye represents; while briefing journalists, said, “We call on the distinguished Senate President to urgently do the needful as requested by our party, by declaring the seat being unlawfully occupied by by Senator Dariye vacant”.
Shignuhul continued, “Fortunately for us in the PDP, the Supreme Court has ruled in a number of cases including the recent judgement in respect of the Kogi State gubernatorial elections that votes lawfully scored during an election belong to the party and not the individual.
“We call on INEC to immediately, upon receipt of the declaration of vacancy from the Senate President to issue a certificate of return to Nde Alexander Molwus who came second in the PDP primaries so that Plateau Central Senatorial District would have an honest, competent, effective and caring representation in the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
The PDP urged the Senate President and INEC to do all that is in the power to protect the nation’s “fragile” democracy.
The party’s vice chairman maintained that there is no division in the party whatsoever, and that Senator Dariye had at no time informed his ward and local party chairmen of his defection, adding that: “his defection was a unilateral decision taken by him.
“He did not consult any organ of the party. We therefore see his defection as an act of betrayal of trust.
“We have therefore met at all relevant levels of the party in the state and hereby pass a vote of no confidence on Senator Joshua Chibi Dariye and therefore can no longer have him as our representative in the hallowed red chambers,” he stressed.
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