Kwara Assembly Urged To Avoid Deepening Defection Crisis

The President of Orisun Igbomina, Chief Gbenga Awoyale, has urged the Kwara State House of Assembly to handle the controversy over the defection of two lawmakers with caution, warning that the matter could trigger a wider political crisis in the state.

The Assembly recently declared the seats of Saba Yisa Gideon, representing Edu Constituency, and Olusola Odetundun, representing Irepodun Constituency, vacant after the lawmakers defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The lawmakers were elected on the APC platform.

The declaration followed a request from the APC State Chairman, Prince Sunday Fagbemi, who asked the Speaker, Yakubu Danladi Salihu, to invoke the relevant constitutional provision on defection.

During deliberations, the House Leader, Abdulkadir Oba Magaji, cited Section 109(1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, arguing that a lawmaker could lose his seat after abandoning the political party that sponsored his election, except where the constitutional exception applies.

The Speaker subsequently declared the two seats vacant, citing Section 109(1)(g)(2).

But Awoyale said the constitutional provision must be applied with due regard to the political circumstances surrounding the defections, warning that the legislature should not become an arena for settling intra-party disputes.

“You cannot solve a political problem by creating another one,” he said, calling for reconciliation, dialogue and, where necessary, judicial interpretation of the constitutional issues.

He challenged claims that there were no serious disagreements within the Kwara APC, noting that the party had previously established a reconciliation committee to engage aggrieved members.

“If there was nothing to reconcile, why was a reconciliation committee constituted in the first place?” Awoyale asked, while also referring to the emergence of the G-15 and other political tendencies within the party.

He said the existence of a reconciliation process suggested that disagreements had occurred within the party, although he acknowledged that internal disputes alone did not automatically satisfy the constitutional conditions that could protect a defecting lawmaker from losing his seat.

Awoyale also questioned the neutrality of the reconciliation efforts, pointing to the involvement of party leaders in events surrounding disputed primary elections.

He stressed, however, that such concerns should not be interpreted as a legal determination on the validity of the lawmakers’ defections.

“These concerns do not, by themselves, determine the legal status of any defection or invalidate the reconciliation committee,” he said.

The Orisun Igbomina leader argued that the constitutional question should be independently examined by the legislature and, where necessary, the courts rather than determined solely by the position of the APC leadership.

“The APC State Chairman is entitled to state his party’s position, but a letter from a party chairman should not substitute for independent constitutional judgment by the legislature. The House belongs to the people, not to any political party or faction,” he said.

He warned that the dispute could have consequences for constituents in Edu and Irepodun, whose elected representation could be affected by the decision.

“Those constituencies elected representatives. Their people should not become casualties of an intra-party dispute,” Awoyale said.

He further called for consistency in the treatment of defections, arguing that politicians who cross into ruling parties are often welcomed while those who leave them are subjected to condemnation.

“If defection is wrong, then the principle should be consistent. Democracy cannot operate on one rule for those coming into a party and another for those leaving it,” he said.

Awoyale appealed to Speaker Salihu and other lawmakers to preserve the independence and credibility of the legislature by ensuring that political disagreements do not influence the exercise of their constitutional responsibilities.

“The gavel should not become an instrument for settling political scores. Whatever our political differences, we must preserve the institutions that will outlive us,” he said.

He urged the APC leadership, the two affected lawmakers and other stakeholders to return to the negotiating table, while allowing any unresolved constitutional questions to be determined through due process.

“Kwara is already navigating a sensitive political moment. We should be reducing tension, not multiplying it,” Awoyale said.

He added: “What we need now is reconciliation, not retaliation; dialogue, not escalation; and respect for the people’s mandate above partisan interests.”