Mr Marvin Ossai from Oshimili North Local Government Area of Delta State has approached a federal high court in Abuja seeking orders of the court to void the seat of Senator Ned Nwoko as the senator representing Delta North Zone at the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria over the defection of the lawmaker from the People’s Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Ossai who’s a constituent and member of the People’s Democratic Party at Nwoko’s Delta State in his suit joined the lawmaker, INEC, Senate, PDP, APC and others as defendants in the suit.
Among Ossai’s prayers to the court against Nwoko are that the court should declare his seat vacant having taken the mandate of the PDP to the APC when there was no crisis in the party to necessitate that. That the court should mandate the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct election into the seat immediately after the judgement voiding the seat. That the court should bar Senator Nwoko from participating in future elections until he obeys the orders of the court as may be contained in the judgement. And that the court should mandate him to return the money accruing to the senator since he jumped ship to the coffers of the party or federal government. He said these were to instill and enforce party discipline in representatives and other elective positions who win elections through political parties in Nigeria as rightly enshrined in the Constitution of the country.
Recall that Sen. Ned Nwoko was elected in 2023 poll to represent Delta North that has the following local government areas: Oshimili North, Oshimili South, Aniocha North, Aniocha South, Ika North, Ika South, Ndokwa East, Ndokwa West and then Ukwuani. Nwoko is serving his first tenure at the Senate. Ned Nwoko was elected into the House of Representatives from 1999 to 2003 to represent Oshimili South/North/Aniocha North/South federal constituency on the platform of PDP. According to grapevine, Nwoko has been having running battles with the PDP governor of Delta State, Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori over some unclear issues concerning political structure. To now secure a return ticket come 2027, he had to defect from the PDP to the APC.
Since the date of his defection, a group of the Delta North constituents led by the deputy governor of the state, Sir Monday Onyeme has threatened to recover the mandate from him and give back to their party, PDP as according to them there was nothing at all to warrant his defection, thereby shortchanging the party. By this defection, the three incumbent senators from the state are now of the APC including majority of the House of Representatives members. Ned Nwoko, a lawyer of international standing is sure of emerging victorious in the end, calling the agitation against his seat as political vendetta taken too far. He assured his constituents of sustained quality representation as has been the order of the day since he got inaugurated into the hallowed chamber of the Nigeria’s National Assembly in 2023. 
