A member of the House of Representatives (Ojema Ojotu (Benue, PDP) has defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, who presided over Tuesday’s plenary session, announced the defection of the lawmaker who represents Apa/Agatu Federal Constituency of Benue State.
Before Ojotu’s defection, the APC had 10 of the 11 members who represent the various constituencies of the North Central States in the Green Chamber.
With Ojotu’s decamping, the ruling APC is now in full control of all Benue federal seats in the House of Representatives.
Ojotu, in a letter to the house, said he left the PDP due to the perennial crisis in the party, adding that “after consultation with his constituents, family members and political associates, I have decided to dump the PDP for the APC.”
The House Deputy Minority Leader, Aliyu Madaki of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), asked Kalu to declare Ojotu’s seat vacant.
He said, “Honourable Speaker, I rely on Constitutional Point of Order 68 (1) (g), which says that a member’s seat should be declared vacant if he leaves the party that sponsored his election, and if there is no division in that party that brought him to power.”
His Point of Order was countered by the House Majority Leader, Ibrahim Halims, who relied on Order 7 to argue that “when there is an unresolved crisis in a party and that party cannot resolve its crisis, the person concerned can leave to protect his future.”
Kalu went ahead to welcome Ojotu, who is the Chairman of the House Committee on Inland Waterways, to the APC and assured him of the support of the party at all times.
