The House of Representatives is working on a new law that may force elected leaders like the president, vice president, governors, and their deputies to resign if they leave the political parties that brought them into power.
This proposal is part of the ongoing Constitution Review process led by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu. The committee plans to submit its final draft to the House by December 2025.
The committee will begin a tour across the country on Saturday to collect public opinions, starting in Kaduna and Sokoto.
The bill seeks to change Sections 143 and 188 of the 1999 Constitution. It wants defection—when leaders switch parties without a real crisis in their original party—to be considered gross misconduct, a reason for removal from office.
A member of the committee, Hon. Solomon Bob, said elected officials should not keep their positions after defecting.
“There is no political jurisdiction anywhere in the world where elective officers defect from their original political parties and still retain their offices. This bill aims to stop that bad habit,” Bob told journalists
He added, “Politicians in Nigeria are not used to staying in one political party for long, and this is what the bill is trying to cure.”
Political defections have become common in Nigeria. Before the 2023 elections, several governors switched parties, including David Umahi, Ben Ayade, and Bello Matawalle. Recently, Delta and Akwa Ibom governors, Sheriff Oborevwori and Umo Eno, moved from the PDP to the APC.
Peter Ameh, Secretary of the Coalition of United Political Parties, supported the idea of stricter laws on defections.
He said, “The Constitution already addresses defections in the legislative arm, but we must now extend that to the executive branch. Elected officials who want to defect should resign and let the party that won the mandate choose a replacement.”
Ameh said that the real problem is not the lack of laws but the failure to enforce them.
“Lawmakers must summon the courage to uphold the constitution and stop acting as a rubber stamp for the executive,” he added.
Also Read:
- Tension as ADC Accuses Tinubu’s Gov’t of Targeting Northern Opposition Leaders
- Babachir – APC Governors Quietly Supporting Opposition Coalition
Arewa Youth Consultative Forum President Yerima Shettima also backed the bill.
“This amendment is a crucial step toward holding political leaders accountable. It will help stop political opportunism and build a more responsible democracy,” Shettima said.
Anthony Sani, a chieftain of the Arewa Consultative Forum, said elected officials who defect should lose their seats.
“The electoral mandate belongs to the party, not the individual. If someone leaves the party, they should leave the office too,” he said.
Civil society leader Auwal Rafsanjani of CISLAC agreed.
He said, “It is wrong to win an election in one party and take the mandate to another. This law will bring discipline to our politics.”