Defections: How Tinubu, Elected Officials Are Defying Provisions Of Constitution – Dr Ardo

The convener of the League of Northern Democrats (LND), Dr Umar Ardo, has declared that following the persistent disregard for the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), the country no longer needs any elections.

He stressed that with such contempt for the rule of law, elected officials could simply remain in office indefinitely.

Ardo noted that the deliberate and continuous disregard for the laws guiding democratic ethos and values by elected public officers and other appointees, have totally render the democratic process so meaningless.

Ardo, who stated these in a statement issued on Saturday, May 10, 2024, spoke against the backdrop of the gale of defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other opposition parties to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), stressing that the defections were in clear violation of the 1999 Constitution.

In the words of Ardo; “Since, it is clear that we have decided to run our democracy without abiding by the provisions of our constitution and the law, then we as well don’t need to conduct any elections anymore.

“Conducting elections every four years is itself a provision of our constitution. Let everybody simply do as they please.”

He noted that on Friday, May 9, 2025, the three PDP senators on the platform of the PDP from Kebbi State namely; senators—Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central), Yahaya Abubakar Abdullahi (Kebbi North), and Garba Maidoki (Kebbi South)—alongside members of the House of Representatives and State House of Assembly, met with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and APC National Chairman Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje at the Presidential Villa in Abuja and announced their defection to the APC.

Ardo said that the event which was marked by a gleeful photo session and a cryptic speech by Ganduje, followed a similar mass defection in Delta State some weeks ago where Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, six federal lawmakers, and 22 state assembly members also crossed over to the APC.

Ardo described the defections as “another sad day for the Nigerian state,” and pointedly accused elected public office holders of throwing “rules, laws, and constitution to the dogs” in pursuit of self-serving political expediency.

He explained that while party-switching is not uncommon in advanced democracies like the United States and United Kingdom, Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended) explicitly addresses defections under Sections 68(1)(g) and 109(1)(g) for federal and state legislators, respectively.

Ardo said that the provisions explicitly stated that a legislator must vacate their seat if they switch parties before the end of their term, unless the defection results from a division within their original party or a merger of parties.

Citing the Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling in Adegunde Vs Ondo State House of Assembly, Ardo noted that the court clarified that a “division” must affect the national structure of the party, not merely its ward, local government, or state levels.

According to Ardo; “There is no division within the ranks and structures of the PDP. The defectors have no legal basis for retaining their seats. Yet, the leadership of the legislative houses—aligned with the APC—refuses to enforce these provisions, prioritizing partisan gains over constitutional duty.

He said that the hiccup lies with Section 68(2) and 109(2), which empower legislative leaders to declare defectors’ seats vacant, adding that because the leaderships belong to the party benefiting from the defections, partisan benefits become more convincing than enforcing the constitution they swore to uphold.

Ardo noted that this failure has turned Nigeria into a “lawless society,” with leaders compromising the very laws they are entrusted to apply.

He specifically labelled the Senate President, Speakers of the House of Representatives, State Assemblies, the APC National Chairman, and President Tinubu as “tyrants and enemies of the state” for encouraging the constitutional violations.

In the words of Ardo; “The consequences of this trend are dire. While bandits and terrorists are outlaws, the ultimate results of compromising the law by those entrusted to apply it could create a thousand bandits and terrorists.

“The actions of these leaders are more dangerous than armed insurgency, as they undermine the foundation of Nigeria’s democracy and society.

“To address the issue, there is the urgent need for a constitutional amendment to strip legislative leadership of the power to declare seats vacant and transfer it to the sponsoring political parties.

“This change should also apply to executive officeholders to strengthen party discipline and stabilize Nigeria’s democracy. Parties will retain political initiatives over their members, thereby strengthening our democracy.

“Shame on the decamping legislators, shame on the APC National Chairman, shame on the leaderships of the legislative houses, and shame on the president himself who encourages such wanton violations of our constitution,” he declared.