In order to fill the seats of lawmakers who have defected from Rivers state, Edwin Clark, the convener of the Pan Niger Delta Forum, or PANDEF, has urged INEC, the Independent National Electoral Commission, to hold a by-election.

Clark stated that there is no crisis within the PDP and that the lawmakers’ defection is a violation of section 109 (1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) in an open letter to INEC chairman Mahmood Yakubu.

The Ijaw leader stated that the lawmakers have resigned their seats in accordance with the Constitution’s provisions and that the electoral body must regard the Constitution as a ground rule.

According to Clark, the lawmakers who defected are currently hopping from court to court in an attempt to avoid their doomed fate.

He wrote, “The people of the affected constituencies have not had representation in the state house of assembly because the seats of the 27 former members of the Rivers state house of assembly have been vacant for a long time, more than a year after the former holders vacated.”

“Under your direction, INEC has not yet fulfilled its mandate to hold a by-election to fill the seats. According to Section 109 1(g), those 27 individuals have automatically and immediately lost their seats as a result of their actions.

Martin Amawhule and his associates continue to pose as RSHA employees in an effort to deflect criticism by claiming that they did not defect. In search of court decisions and judgments, they are hopping from one court to another.

“I implore the INEC Chairman to hold a by-election as soon as possible in order to fill the open seats and provide the residents of the impacted constituencies with sufficient representation.”

Members of the national and state houses of assembly have resigned or died, necessitating the holding of by-elections.