On Wednesday, The Senate declared the seats of Ebonyi South and Yobe East Senatorial Districts vacant.
The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the seats vacant during plenary.
The seats were declared vacant following appointments of David Umahi and Ibrahim Gaidam as ministers of work and police affairs respectively.
Since their appointments as ministers, the two senatorial ddstricts have been left unrepresented at the upper chamber.
During the plenary, Mr Akpabio called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct by-elections in the two districts for representation at the upper chamber.
“INEC may therefore wish to commence the process of conducting by-elections to fill the vacancies immediately,” the senate president said.
When a serving lawmaker at the national or state house of assembly resigns or dies, the presiding officer will declare the seat vacant.
The electoral commission will thereafter conduct a by-election in the constituency for another person to fill the vacant seat.
In October, a bill for the amendment of the Electoral Act 2022 to allow political parties to nominate candidates to fill a vacant seat if a lawmaker resigns or dies passed the first reading in the house of representatives.
The Chairman of INEC, Mahmood Yakubu, said on Monday that the commission is considering conducting by-elections and rerun polls in 34 state and federal constituencies in February 2024.
“The commission is looking at the first week of February 2024, that is, in just a little over one month to conduct both the re-run and by-elections,” Mr Yakubu said.
Both ministers had served as governors of their respective states, Ebonyi and Yobe, before their election into the Senate. Premium Times
