Actor and African Democratic Congress (ADC) chieftain, Kenneth Okonkwo, has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to declare the Bayelsa State governorship seat vacant following Governor Douye Diri’s resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Governor Diri, on Wednesday, formally announced his exit from the PDP alongside 23 members of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly during an expanded executive meeting held at the Government House, Yenagoa. The meeting, which Diri chaired, was attended by the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Abraham Ingobere, his deputy, Michael Ogbere, and other principal officers, including APGA minority leader, Edward Brigidi.
While the governor attributed his resignation to “obvious reasons,” he declined to disclose further details, nor did he clarify the political status of his deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, who was reportedly absent from the meeting.
In a statement issued later by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, Governor Diri’s decision to leave the PDP was described as the outcome of “extensive consultations with political stakeholders across the state.”
Reacting to the development, Kenneth Okonkwo took to his Instagram page, arguing that the Bayelsa governor had automatically forfeited his position the moment he left the PDP without aligning with another political party.
Citing Section 177(c) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), Okonkwo stated that “a person is qualified to hold the office of governor only if he is a member of a political party and is sponsored by that political party.”
“The Constitution does not permit an elected officer to exist as partyless,” he said. “You can defect from one political party to another, but you cannot operate outside any. Therefore, Governor Douye Diri ceased to be governor the moment he resigned from the PDP without declaring for another political platform.”
Okonkwo, a former spokesperson for the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, urged INEC to “immediately declare the Bayelsa governorship seat vacant and conduct a fresh election within 90 days as required by law.”
As of press time, neither Governor Diri nor the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had issued any official response to Okonkwo’s call.
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