Court sack Umahi, deputy over defection from PDP
A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Tuesday, sacked Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State and his Deputy, Dr Eric Kelechi Igwe, following their defection from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC.
According to a judgement delivered by Justice Inyang Ekwo, the total number of 393, 042 votes governor Umahi secured during the March 9, 2019 governorship election in Ebonyi state, belonged to the PDP and cannot be legally transferred to the APC
He said both Umahi and his deputy, not only jettisoned the PDP, but also the votes that belonged to it.
“There is no constitutional provision that made the ballot transferrable from one party to the other”
It held that the PDP is bound to retain the votes and mandate that was given to it by electorates in Ebonyi state, as both governor Umahi and his Deputy could not validly transfer same to APC. The Court therefore ordered both Umahi and Igwe to immediately vacate their positions.
