Veteran Nollywood actor and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Kenneth Okonkwo, has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to declare the office of Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, vacant following his recent resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Governor Diri had earlier announced his resignation from the PDP along with several members of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly during an expanded State Executive Council meeting at Government House, Yenagoa.
Present at the meeting were the Speaker of the House, Abraham Ingobere, his deputy, Michael Ogbere, the All Progressives Grand Alliance minority leader, Edward Brigidi, and seven other lawmakers.
According to a statement from the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Alabrah, the decision came after wide consultations with key political stakeholders in the state.
Diri expressed appreciation to his supporters for standing by him and called on them to remain steadfast as he works to build “a strong and vibrant Bayelsa.”
However, the governor did not mention the position of his deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, who was reportedly absent during the meeting.
Reacting to the development, Okonkwo took to his Instagram page on Wednesday night, arguing that Diri’s resignation from his party automatically renders his position as governor invalid.
He wrote, “Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State has just vacated his seat as governor by resigning from the PDP and not belonging to any party.
ALSO READ
“The position of the law is that every elected member of the government must be a member of a political party, as provided in Section 177(c) of the 1999 Constitution.
“Governor Diri, being not a member of any political party, has lost his seat as governor. An elected member of government can only defect from one party to another, but cannot be partyless at any point in time.
“I therefore call on INEC to declare his seat vacant immediately and conduct a gubernatorial election in Bayelsa State within the next 90 days.”
Okonkwo based his argument on Section 177(c) of the Nigerian Constitution, which states that a person is qualified to be elected as governor only if they are a member of a political party and sponsored by that party.
Diri’s resignation has continued to generate political tension in Bayelsa, with widespread speculation that he may be on the verge of joining the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
