Rivers Assembly: Opposition lawmakers accuse PDP of supporting defected members

From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

The Coalition of opposition lawmakers in the House of Representatives has accused the national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) of allegedly giving covert support to members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, who defected to the All Progressives Congress( APC) recently.

The spokesman of the coalition, Ikeagwuonu Ugochinyere, in a statement, on Saturday, said the PDP leadership is allegedly plotting to sabotage the case of the opposition party in the legal tussle over the declaration of the seat of the defected members vacant.

The defection of some members of the Rivers State House of Assembly to the APC has been a subject of litigation, in the past few months.

However, Ugochinyere said the alleged support by the PDP national secretariat for the defected Rivers Assembly members is ill-motivated and would the interest of the opposition party in the state.

According to him, it is part of a broader scheme to allegedly destabilize the party in Rivers State, so as to pave way for APC to take over the state.

The lawmaker warned that there will be consequences if the alleged plot to destabilize the PDP in Rivers State is allowed to succeed. He explained that it would erode internal democracy within the opposition party, loss of public confidence amongst others.

Consequently, the lawmaker stated that
“the PDP must stand united in the face of this betrayal. We call on all members of the PDP and well-meaning Nigerians to join us in defending the integrity of our party and ensuring that justice prevails.”

Ugochinyere, while stating that the opposition coalition continue their fight to protect the PDP from internal and external threats, said the party top hierarchy must be restrained from allegedly interfering in cases involving the opposition party in court.