By Rita Ebiuwa
Frankly, it doesn’t make any logical sense. As a member of the House of Assembly, you are an elected lawmaker with constitutional rights and privileges. Your entitlements—salaries, allowances, constituency projects, oversight responsibilities—are not dependent on which party controls the executive arm. These are statutory and protected under the law. So why are some lawmakers so quick to jump ship simply because their party is no longer in power, and just for five months?
The speed with which some of them are decamping from PDP to APC raises serious questions about their principles and commitment to the people who elected them. It gives the impression that their loyalty lies not with the electorate, but with whoever holds the reins of power at the moment. This is not only disappointing, it’s dangerous for our democracy.
Our democracy suffers when politicians treat party platforms as mere vehicles for personal gain. A legislator should be guided by ideology, party manifesto, and above all, the mandate of their constituents. Defecting simply because your party lost an election after holding power for eight years shows a lack of depth, character, and understanding of what representation means.
In reality, these defections are rarely about serving the people better. They are mostly driven by fear of being sidelined, or desperation to remain “relevant” in the new political arrangement. But in doing so, they betray the very voters who trusted them with a mandate under a particular party platform.
It’s high time their seats are declared vacant and begin to demand more from those who represent us. Our House of Assembly should not be a marketplace of political transactions. Lawmakers must learn to stand firm, defend their party’s ideals, and show the courage to stay the course even when the political climate is not in their favor. That is what true leadership looks like.
