Yakubu Dogara
Court sacks Dogara from House of Reps for defecting to APC from PDP
Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has sacked Yakubu Dogara, from the House of Representatives for defecting from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP0 to the All Progressives Congress (APC) just after the 2019 general elections.
Dogara who represents Bogoro/Dass Federal Constituency of Bauchi State was a former Speaker of the Lower Chambers of the National Assembly between 2015 and 2019during the 8th session of the assembly.
Dogara had cited a breakdown of governance under Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State for his defection to the APC.
Delivering judgment Friday, Justice Donatus Okorowo, declared that having defected from PDP to APC, Dogara was no longer qualified to occupy the seat by virtue of Section 68(1)(g) of the constitution.
Justice Okorowo aligned with the argument of the PDP that by defecting from the party that sponsored him to the ninth National Assembly before the expiration of his tenure, Dogara ought to vacate the seat as he was no longer qualified to partake in the activities of the lower house.
The judge, who held that the action of the lawmaker is prohibited by law, agreed that the aim of Section 68(1)(g) was to check political prostitution among the legislators.
“The judgment is therefore given in favour of the plaintiffs I hereby granted the reliefs sought by the plaintiffs,” he declared.
The plaintiffs, through their counsel, Jubrin Jubrin, had pleaded that by virtue of section 68(1)(g) of the Constitution, Dogara, by defecting from the party that sponsored him to the 9th National Assembly before the expiration of his tenure, ought to vacate the seat as he was no longer qualified to partake in the activities of the lower house.
Dogara’s sacking follows a similar judgement removing the Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi and his deputy, Kelechi Igwe, along with 16 members of the State House of Assembly, by the same Federal High Court in Abuja presided over by Justice Inyang Ekwo, on the account of their 2021 defection from the PDP to the APC
Also, a High Court in Abuja presided over Justice Taiwo Taiwo had ruled to sack Cross River State parliamentarians at both the National Assembly and the state House of Assembly for defecting from the PDP to the PDP.
Dogara had in letter of resignation from the PDP addressed to the Bogoro ‘C’ Ward Chairman of the PDP dated July 24, 2020, said though he helped install Mohammed as governor in 2019, he could ask questions about the state of government without being accused of disloyalty.
