The indigenes of plateau State have taken to the streets of Jos to protest against the sacking of their elected federal lawmakers in three separate judgements of the Court of Appeal.
The protesters described the judgement as conflicting judgments “targeted” at sacking state and National Assembly members elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.
The affected lawmakers are Peter Gyendeng representing Barkin-Ladi/Riyom Federal Constituency; Musa Bagos representing Jos South/Jos East Federal Constituency and Beni Lar of Langtang North/Langtang South Federal Constituency.
The protesters who had rejected the court judgement blocked the Jos-Abuja Highway on Wednesday, thereby causing heavy traffic and leaving travellers stranded without other option.
Many of the protesters also gathered at the popular Mararaba Jamaa Roundabout singing anti-judiciary songs and burning tyres on the road to register their grievances.
They accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of using the appeal court to “force their candidates who were rejected at the poll by the people during the 2023 general elections into power through the back door.”
Some of the protesters held placards with different inscriptions such as, ‘The ballot is supreme’, ‘Do not kill our democracy’, ‘PDP is alive,’ ‘Return people’s mandate’, ‘We want justice’ amongst many others.
Security operatives present were seen trying to disperse another set of protesters who gathered at the Old Airport Road denouncing the court verdicts and calling on the National Judicial Council to intervene in all the cases before the Appeal Court involving the PDP and its candidates from Plateau.
It could be recalled that about four National Assembly members elected on the platform of the PDP including the Senate minority leader, Simon Mwadkwon, had been sacked by the Appeal Court on the grounds that the PDP had no valid structure in the state.
