The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has asked Senator Ishaku Abbo (Adamawa North) to vacate his seat in the Senate following his defection, on Wednesday, to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, made the party’s position known in a statement on Wednesday.
He reminded the lawmaker of the provision of the Constitution which made it compulsory for any member of the National Assembly who defected to another party to immediately vacate his seat.
“Abbo is fully aware of the constitutional implication of his decision to defect to another party, which is that he cannot continue to occupy the seat of the PDP in the Senate,” Ologbondiyan said.
Meanwhile, he said the PDP was not worried by Abbo’s decision even he said the party would take immediate steps to ensure Abbo did not remain in the upper legislative chamber.
“The place of any senator who changed parties except on the grounds provided by the constitution is very clear, and the PDP will not allow Senator Abbo to run away with our mandate. It is impossible.”
The statement disclosed that the party had “already commenced processes for Abbo’s replacement with a credible, stable and acceptable person to take over his seat in the Senate.”
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The Next Edition had reported that Abbo announced his defection in a letter he wrote to the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan on Wednesday.
He also claimed that his decampment was made inevitable by Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri’s alleged polarisation of the PDP in the North East state.
In the letter titled, “Movement of God’s people from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress,” he cited “the mismanagement of the PDP by Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri in Adamawa State,” as reason for his defection.
Abbo, recently convicted by an FCT High Court in Abuja and ordered to pay N50 million in a civil suit between him and Ms. Osimibibra Warmate for an assault on her in a sex toy shop last year, also told journalists that he had his eyes on the Adamawa Government House come 2023.
