Gbajabiamila gets 7 days to declare Dogara’s seat vacant

• ‘Only constituents can unseat him’

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has given the Speaker, House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, seven days to declare Yakubu Dogara’s seat vacant or face legal action.

Dogara, a former speaker, had on July 24, 2020 defected from PDP to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

In a letter to Gbajabiamila yesterday, the PDP prayed that Dogara, representing Dass, Tafawa Balewa and Bogoro Federal Constituency in Bauchi State in the House of Representatives, should be removed.

The letter reads in part: “It is against the background of the foregoing that we demand your invocation of the provisions of Section 68(1)(g) and (2) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) by declaring his (Dogara) seat vacant consequent upon his said defection within seven working days of the receipt of this notice.

“This comes with the further notice that upon your refusal, failure or neglect to heed this demand, we shall proceed to commence legal action against you in a competent court of law.”

The letter was written by S. Rabo Esq., J. S. Jihrin Esq., A. S. Idris Esq and H.S. Saraki Esq and copied to the minority leader and members representing Zaki and Gamawa federal constituencies of Bauchi.

But the Tafawa Balewa, Dass and Bogoro Youth Development Foundation, in a reaction through its chairman, Emmanuel Isheni, said that Dogara remained “a political party of his constituency which the constituents are ready to follow to any party.”

According to the group, no one is capable of unseating Dogara except those who elected him.

“Ninety nine per cent of the people from the three local councils are with him. We want to tell the good people of Tafawa Balewa/Dass/Bogoro Federal Constituency, Bauchi State and Nigeria that Dogara understands the system of this country. We are firmly behind him and we pledge our support to him at all ramifications,” the group said.