Court sacks National Assembly member for dumping his party

The Supreme Court has ordered a member of House of Representatives, representing Akure South and North Federal Constituency of
Ondo State, Honourable Sunday Ifedayo Abegunde to vacate his seat.

Mr Abegunde is to vacate his seat on account of his defection from the Labour Party [LP] on which platform he was elected in 2011 to the now defunct Action Congress of Nigeria [ACN], now merged to answer All Progressives Congress (APC).

 In a unanimous decision by a seven-man pane led by the Chief justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmoud Mohammed, the court held that Mr Abegunde's defection could not be justified since his excuse of purported division in the Labour Party was not in existence in the national structure of the party.

The court held that the division and factionalisation cited by Abegunde as his excuse for abandoning the Labour party was only at the state level.

The Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC] will now conduct a bye-election to fill the vacuum created by the ousting of Mr Abegunde.

Photo: Honourable Sunday Ifedayo Abegunde and Governor of Osun State, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola