FEDERAL HIGH COURT OUSTS ZAMFARA LAWMAKER OVER DEFECTION FROM PDP TO APC

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A Federal High Court in Abuja has sacked the member representing Gummi/Bukkuyum Federal Constituency of Zamfara State, Abubakar Suleiman Gummi, for defecting from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Justice Obiora Egwuatu, who delivered the judgment, held that Gummi’s defection was unconstitutional since there was no division in the PDP at the time he left the party. The court ruled that by abandoning the platform under which he was elected, Gummi automatically forfeited his seat in the House of Representatives in line with Section 68(1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

The judge ordered the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, to immediately declare the seat vacant and barred him from further recognising Gummi as the representative of the constituency.

Justice Egwuatu also directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a fresh election in the constituency within 30 days to fill the vacant seat.

In addition, the court ordered Gummi to refund all salaries, allowances, and other benefits he had received since October 30, 2024 — the date of his defection — until the judgment day. The court also awarded a cost of ₦500,000 against him in favour of the PDP and its Zamfara State Chairman, Jamilu Jibomagayaki, who filed the suit.

Gummi had argued that he left the PDP due to internal crises within the party at both national and state levels, but the court dismissed the claim, noting that no legally recognised faction existed to justify his defection.

Justice Egwuatu condemned the growing trend of politicians defecting from one political party to another after being elected on a particular platform, describing it as “political prostitution.”

He said, “When electorates make their choices based on political parties, it is both legally and morally wrong for an elected politician to abandon the party under which they secured victory and still retain the mandate.”

The ruling reinforces constitutional provisions prohibiting lawmakers from switching parties midterm without losing their seats, except in cases of a legitimate division within their former party.

The judgment is expected to trigger a by-election in Gummi/Bukkuyum Federal Constituency as INEC begins preparations to fill the vacant seat.