A member of the House of Representatives representing Apa/Agatu Federal Constituency of Benue State, Ojema Ojotu, has officially defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress.
The Deputy Speaker, Hon Benjamin Kalu, who presided over Tuesday’s plenary session, announced Ojotu’s defection and read the lawmaker’s defection letter on the floor of the Green Chamber.
Before now, the APC produced 10 out of the 11 members that represent the various constituencies of the North Central State in the Green Chamber.
With Ojotu’s defection, the ruling APC is now in full control of all Benue federal seats in the House of Representatives.
In a letter read on the floor by Kalu, Ojotu anchored his decision to leave the PDP on the perennial crisis involving the PDP.
“After consultation with his constituents, family members and political associates, I have decided to dump the PDP for the APC,” he said.
The defection was not without a challenge from the opposition as the House Deputy Minority Leader, Aliyu Madaki of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, called on the presiding officer to declare Ojotu’s seat vacant.
He said, “Honourable Speaker, I rely on Constitutional Point of Order 68 (1) (g), which says that a member’s seat should be declared vacant if he leaves the party that sponsored his election, and if there is no division in that party that brought him to power.”
His Point of Order was countered by the House Majority Leader, Ibrahim Halims, who relied on Order 7 to argue that “When there is an unresolved crisis in a party and that party cannot resolve its crisis, the person concerned can leave to protect his future.”
In his remarks, the deputy speaker welcomed Ojotu to the APC and assured him of the support of the party at all times.
SUMMITPOSTNEWS reports that Ojotu is the Chairman of the House Committee on Inland Waterways.