And if they did, then a plain meaning analysis of Section 68 (1) (g) of the 1999 Constitution is inadequate. Justice Ademola’s conclusion fails to advance societal interest in the face of a constitution that subjects the collective decision of a legislative constituency to the dictates of a political party, and it is dangerous.ĭoes Justice Ademola’s decision disenfranchise the electorates in the legislative constituencies represented by the affected legislators? What happens when a legislator is kicked out of his party or refuses to caucus with his party? What happens when a legislator decides to run for a subsequent election on the slate of another party? What should be the appropriate role of the party in our democratic system? What is the evil of carpet-crossing? These are some of the political, but substantive questions that ought to trouble Justice Ademola before his decision. But that analysis is unhelpful in the face of a constitution that places party politics above the national politics.
On the surface, Justice Ademola is correct and limited in his opinion, and even more, when the supremacy clause of Section 1 of the 1999 Constitution is read in conjunction. Section 68 (1) (g) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended. ‘Being a person whose election to the House was sponsored by a political party, he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that House was elected provided that his membership of the latter political party is not as a result of a division in the political party of which he was previously a member or of a merger of two or more political parties or factions by one of which he was previously sponsored.’”
“A member of the Senate or the House of Representatives shall vacate his seat in the House of which he is a member if –
In his ruling, the Justice applied the Plain Meaning rule to conclude that the following warrants his conclusion: The Justice interpreted Section 68 (1) (g) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, to prohibit the legislators from conducting any further legislative businesses. Justice Ademola of the Abuja Federal High Court declared that the PDP legislators that defected to the opposition party have forfeited their seats in the Assembly.
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