By Desire Emmanuel
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Saturday, December 6, took the 17 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly to the cleaners for detecting to the All Progressives Congress (APC), describing them as “political puppets and a clog in the wheels of democratic progress.”
The PDP disclosed this in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, saying the lawmakers had earlier defected from the PDP, recanted their defection and still went ahead to defect again.
It will be recalled that the Speaker of the Assembly and 16 other members announced their defection on Friday, saying their decision to leave the PDP was due to various crises bedevilling the party.
However, reacting to the defection, the PDP said it would take legal step to recover the mandate given to the defectors by the party.
It wrote: “We have seen on various media platforms news of the re-defection of some members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, who, for a second time, announced their defection from our party.
“We recall that they had done so earlier and later recanted. These are people whom the world is aware are doing the bidding of their paymaster and demigod.
“The members of the Rivers State House of Assembly have, by their actions since they assumed office, shown that they are political puppets and a clog in the wheels of democratic progress. They will go down in history as enemies of democracy and those who made mockery of the legislature.
“So the easiest way to describe their action is a defection from APC to APC.
“Consequently, the PDP will take legal steps to activate the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria(1999 as amended) to recover the mandate gained under the banner of our party which these people have now ignobly and surreptitiously switched to another platform.
“We urge all party members in Rivers State to remain faithful and resolute, as efforts are underway to rebuild the party along the path of inclusiveness, fairness and equity.”
