The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the removal of Representative Abubakar Gummi from his seat for defecting from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Gummi, who represented the Gummi/Bukkuyum Federal Constituency of Zamfara State in the House of Representatives, was sacked by Justice Obiora Egwuatu in a judgment delivered on Thursday, with the certified true copy sighted on Friday.
The court also restrained the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, from recognizing Gummi as the member representing the constituency and directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a fresh election to fill the vacancy within 30 days.
The suit was filed by the PDP and its Zamfara State Chairman, Jamilu Jibomagayaki, who argued that Gummi’s continued stay in office was unconstitutional under Section 68(1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), as his defection occurred when there was no division in the PDP.
The plaintiffs further contended that the Speaker’s failure to declare Gummi’s seat vacant was a violation of the law.
In his defense, Gummi, through his counsel, claimed that his defection was justified by “lingering unresolved internal and external crises” within the PDP, both at the national level and in his constituency. He said the situation made it impossible for him to effectively represent his constituents and ensure equitable distribution of democratic dividends.
However, Justice Egwuatu rejected his defense, granting all the reliefs sought by the plaintiffs and condemning the culture of political defection. He emphasized that elected officials must respect the will of the electorate who voted for them on the platform of a political party.
“Before I take my fingers off the keyboard, let me just add that politicians should respect the wishes of the electorate that elected them into office,” the judge remarked.
He stressed that mandates are non-transferable, stating: “If a person must decamp, don’t decamp with the mandate of the electorate. Don’t transfer the votes garnered on the platform of one party to another party. A politician has no such right to transfer votes of a political party to another political party.”
The court held that Gummi automatically lost his seat for defecting before the end of his tenure and ordered him to refund all monies received as salaries and allowances from October 30, 2024, to the date of the judgment.
Justice Egwuatu further directed that evidence of repayment must be filed in the court’s registry within 30 days and awarded ₦500,000 in costs against the defendants in favour of the plaintiffs.
He concluded that “political prostitution must not be rewarded,” reaffirming the constitutional principle that the mandate belongs to the political party, not the individual.
