Peter Obi, others trapped as NDC orders aspirants to sign agreement to lose seat if they defect after winning elections

 Peter Obi, others trapped as NDC orders aspirants to sign agreement to lose seat if they defect after winning elections

The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has introduced a new policy requiring all its candidates to sign legally binding affidavits pledging to surrender their electoral mandates if they defect from the party after winning office.

Announcing the policy in Abuja, the party's National Chairman, Senator Cleopas Moses Zuwoghe, said the move is aimed at strengthening party discipline and curbing the growing trend of political defections in Nigeria.

Zuwoghe described the initiative as a major shift from conventional politics, insisting that electoral victories secured on a party's platform belong primarily to the party and not individual officeholders.

"Our goal is to build a political party that will outlive its founders and become a lasting institution for future generations. We cannot achieve that if elected officials freely abandon the platform that gave them victory," he said.

Under the new arrangement, all aspirants seeking elective offices on the NDC platform must sign an indemnity agreement and sworn affidavit before they can be cleared for nomination. The policy will apply to candidates contesting presidential, governorship and legislative elections.

The NDC chairman lamented the increasing practice of politicians defecting shortly after winning elections, arguing that it weakens political parties and undermines public trust in the democratic process.

The party's National Legal Adviser, Barrister Reuben Egwuaba, defended the policy, citing constitutional provisions and court precedents to support the argument that candidates contest elections as representatives of their political parties.

He maintained that the policy does not violate freedom of association because members remain free to leave the party whenever they choose.

"The party is not preventing anyone from defecting. What we are saying is that if you leave, you should also surrender the mandate that came through the party," Egwuaba said.