Defection: Kwara lawmaker reacts to declaration of his seat vacant

Shaheed Adekeye-Popoola, a member of the Kwara State House of Assembly, has described the declaration of his seat vacant by the assembly as illegal, unconstitutional and contempt of court.

Adekeye-Popoola made the assertion in llorin on Friday during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria.

He spoke in reaction to the declaration of his seat vacant by the House during Thursday’s plenary.

NAN recalls that the Speaker of the House, Yakubu Danladi, declared the lawmaker’s seat vacant following his defection to the Social Democratic Party from the All Progressives Congress.

The embattled legislator said the House, the party and the State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, do not have the jurisdiction to declare his seat vacant as a result of his defection.

“The Speaker, the House members and the Governor and even the Attorney General of the state and the party does not have the right to declare my seat vacant,” he said.

“The only organ that can declare my seat vacant is the court of law and l had filed a process in the court of law last week where l was given an injunction against them which was served on the House not to tamper with my seat,” Adekeye-Popoola added.

“The Speaker is not a judge.

“He is a colleague like me and he cannot declare my seat vacant since we came through the same election representing our constituencies.”

NAN also recalls that Adekeye-Popoola, who is representing Ojomu-Balogun Constituency in Offa Local Government Area, is the only second term legislator in the Ninth Legislature in Kwara State.

Similarly, the spokesman of the Social Democratic Party in Kwara State, lbrahim Sharafudeen, described the declaration of the lawmaker’s seat by the House as total ignorance of the law.

Sharafudeen said there is existing injunction restraining the state legislature from taking the action until the substantive matter is addressed.

Meanwhile, the spokesman of the All Progressives Congress in Kwara State, Tajudeen Aro, said the declaration of the lawmaker’s seat vacant was in the right direction.

Aro said the victory of Adakeye-Popoola at the poll belongs to the APC and cannot carry the victory of the APC to the SDP that did not present any candidate for the election.