The Kwara State House of Assembly on Tuesday declared the seats of two lawmakers vacant after they dumped the All Progressives Congress for the Peoples Democratic Party.
The affected members are Hon. Saaba Issa Gideon of Edu Constituency and Hon. Olusola Odetundun of Irepodun Constituency. Both were elected on the APC platform in 2023.
The move followed a letter from APC State Chairman, Sunday Fagbemi, to Speaker Yakubu Danladi-Salihu. Fagbemi urged the House to apply Section 109(1)(g) of the 1999 Constitution, which bars a legislator from defecting unless there is a division in the party that sponsored them.
Leading the debate, House Leader Oba Mogaji said the provision was clear. “A member shall not belong to another political party than the one that sponsored him to the House, as long as his tenure has not expired,” he told colleagues. He added that both lawmakers had already indicated interest in running again in 2027 under the PDP, which he said violated the Constitution.
The Assembly voted to declare the seats vacant. The motion was supported by members including Abolarin Gabriel of Ekiti, Ganiyu Folabi of Omupo, and Adato Oguniyi of Ojomu/Balogun.
The PDP in Kwara immediately rejected the decision. In a statement by Publicity Secretary Olusegun Adewara, the party called it a politically driven move and questioned why the process started with a letter from the APC chairman, who is not a voter in Edu or Irepodun.
“The Constitution recognises exceptions such as party division, and Section 109(2) requires evidence satisfactory to the House before the Speaker acts,” Adewara said. He urged Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq and the Speaker to keep the Assembly independent and not use it as “an extension of APC’s disciplinary machinery.”
The PDP said it would challenge the declaration in court to protect the rights of Gideon, Odetundun, and their constituents. It also argued that if the APC is confident, it should test its strength at the polls instead of “parliamentary manoeuvring.”
Both lawmakers announced their resignation from the APC in late August, citing a lack of internal democracy and consultations with constituents. Their defection is part of a wider realignment in Kwara ahead of 2027, including Senator Saliu Mustapha, who also left the APC for the PDP and was unveiled as the party’s senatorial candidate.
Gideon’s exit comes months after the Assembly suspended him for three months over alleged contempt. A Kwara State High Court later nullified that suspension.
The Speaker’s office has not indicated whether it will release further evidence cited in the proceedings.
