By A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has sacked Ebonyi State governor, David Umahi and his deputy, Dr Eric Kelechi Igwe, following their defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Recall that the governor had in November 2020 dumped the PDP for the ruling party.
Delivering the judgement on Monday, Justice Inyang Ekwo held that the total number of 393, 042 votes Umahi secured during the March 9, 2019 governorship election in Ebonyi state, belonged to the PDP and couldn’t be legally transferred to the APC.
The judgement followed a suit the PDP lodged before the court.
The court also sacked the 17 members of the Ebonyi state house of assembly who joined the governor to move over to the ruling party.
It noted that following their defection to the APC, both Umahi and his deputy have jettisoned the PDP and the votes that belonged to it.
Ekwo ruled that going by the outcome of the governorship election, the office of the governor and deputy governor in Ebonyi state, “belong to the Plaintiff and no other political party”.
The court then ordered both Umahi and Igwe to immediately vacate their positions.
It also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately receive from the PDP, names of persons to replace Umahi and his deputy, or in the alternative, conduct a fresh gubernatorial election in Ebonyi State in line with section 177(c) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
The court further restrained both Umahi and Igwe from further parading themselves as governor or deputy governor of Ebonyi State.
