There is palpable fear in the camp of Cross River State Governor Ben Ayade as court rules on his defection suit on Friday, it was learnt.
FirstNews on Monday reported that an Abuja Federal High Court sacked two House of Reps members and 18 Cross River State House of Assembly members, who along Governor Ayade, dumped the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.
According to the court, presided over by Justice Taiwo Taiwo, the lawmakers should not continue to enjoy their seats having left the party on which platform they were elected into power.
“A day must surely come when elected officials must either resign from their office or ask the people who voted for them before defecting to other political parties, instead of defecting to another party without recourse to the law and the citizens, ” the judge had said.
He added that one cannot continue in sin and expect grace to abound.
It was learnt that the ruling of the court has thrown Ayade’s camp in disarray.
The tension in the governor’s camp, is said to be heightening as the court day approaches, because the same judge who sacked the lawmakers for the offence he committed alongside with them is also the one to hear the PDP’s suiit filed against the governor.
In the suiit through its counsel Emmanuel Ukala, SAN, and marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/975/2021, the PDP is asking Justice Taiwo to sack Governor Ayade and his deputy over their defection to the APC among others.
Recall that an Abuja Federal High Court had also recently, sacked Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State for also dumping the PDP and defecting to the APC.
Umahi’s request for a stay of execution of the ruling was rejected by the Abuja court on Monday.