No fewer than nine senators from different political parties on Thursday announced their defection to the African Democratic Congress, a move that further reshapes the political composition of the Senate of Nigeria.
The lawmakers who switched allegiance include Aminu Tambuwal, Enyinnaya Abaribe, Binos Yaroe, Victor Umeh, Tony Nwoye, Lawal Usman, Ogoshi Onawo, Austin Akobundu and Ireti Kingibe.
Their letters of defection were read during Thursday’s plenary by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.
In his letter, Nwoye explained that his decision to leave the Labour Party was due to ongoing internal crises and legal disputes within the party, which he said had affected its stability and unity.
“I wish to tender my resignation amid the ongoing multiple litigations within the Labour Party, which have significantly affected the cohesion and stability of the party,” Nwoye wrote in his letter.
After reading the letters, Akpabio welcomed the defecting lawmakers to their new political platform but dismissed claims that the ruling All Progressives Congress was responsible for the wave of defections.
According to him, the lawmakers came from different political parties facing internal challenges.
“I hope you noticed that I have read defections from three different political parties now. So, you cannot accuse the ruling party of tampering with its leadership,” Akpabio said.
He noted that the parties affected included the All Progressives Grand Alliance, the Labour Party and the Social Democratic Party.
The defections reflect ongoing political realignments in the 10th Senate, where several lawmakers have changed party affiliations in recent months amid disputes within opposition parties.
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Following the latest development, the All Progressives Congress still holds a dominant majority in the chamber with 87 senators, while the Peoples Democratic Party now has seven members.
The African Democratic Congress, strengthened by the new defections, also has seven senators in the chamber.
Other minority parties represented in the Senate include the New Nigeria People’s Party and the National Democratic Congress, each with one senator, bringing the total number of senators in the chamber to 106.
Meanwhile, both the Labour Party and the Social Democratic Party currently have no representation in the Senate following the latest defections.
