Ebonyi State governor, Dave Umahi and his Deputy Kelechi Igwe have appealed the order of an Abuja Federal High Court, which sacked them from office.
The court had on Tuesday sacked Umahi and his deputy over their defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
Justice Inyang Ekwo in his ruling held that 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 same could not be legally transferred to the APC.
According to the court, having defected to the APC, both Umahi and his deputy, not only jettisoned the PDP, but also the votes that belonged to it.
But the duo in their notice of appeal filed at the Court of Appeal, Abuja, said they disagreed with the entire judgement of the lower court, which ordered their sack for defecting to the PDP.
They argued that the Federal High Court was virtually setting aside the Supreme Court of Nigeria’s decision in AG Federation v. Atiku Abubakar & 3 ORS (2007) LCN/3799 (SC) to the effect that there is no constitutional provisions prohibiting president or vice and invariably the governor and or deputy governor from defecting to another political party.
