Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), senators have staged a walk-out during plenary over the defection of Senator Yele Omogunwa (Ondo South) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The rowdy session ensued on Wednesday, as the PDP senators demanded that the senate president should declare his seat vacant.
According to the PDP lawmakers, any lawmaker who defects to another political party must automatically loose his or her seat.
Mr Omogunwa who had announced his defection to the APC on the eve of the Ondo governorship election, was the only PDP senator from Ondo state.
The Senate President, Bukola Saraki read Omogunwa’s letter through which he formally informed his colleagues of his defection.
According to him, division in the PDP was one of his reasons for making the decision.
Speaking after the announcement, senate minority leader, Godswill Akpabio, said since Omogunwa had defected to the APC, his seat ought to be declared vacant.
He called on the lawmakers not to encourage “political rascality”, adding that the seat belonged to PDP and since there was no crisis in the party, following the ruling of the Supreme Court, which recognized Senator Ahmed Makarfi as the leader of the party, the Senator’s seat must be declared out of order.
He therefore asked the senate president to declare Omogunwa’s seat vacant but Dr. Saraki declined, and ruled him out of order.
Consequently, the minority leader led his fellow PDP senators to a walk out after which, Ovie Omo-Agege, Labour Party Senator from Delta state, was asked to assume the role of minority vacated by the PDP, and proceedings continued.
