Foremost constitutional lawyer, Femi Falana, said the members of the Rivers State House of Assembly whose seats were declared vacant were inexposed to sound legal advice.
Falana stated this in an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday.
He said the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is required by law to conduct elections for the seats of the lawmakers.
He said, “The legislators were not exposed to sound legal advice. Everybody should know that once the Supreme Court has made a pronouncement on a matter in any country, you’re bound to comply, and if you’re going to take any decision, you must study the judgement critically.
“Just yesterday, 20 legislators who defected from the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, to the All Progressives Congress, APC, had their seats declared vacant by the court. That’s the law; unless the Supreme Court decides to change it, that is the law in Nigeria today.
“It’s also a good development; it’s a good law; it’s a good interpretation that there should be no political prostitution in the country, because it’s tantamount to political immorality if you vote on the platform of a political party and you abandon the party; you’re advised to go and try your luck by contesting again under the new political party,” he said.
