- Their defection notices were presented during plenary
- the APC still maintains a strong majority in the chamber with 87 senators.
- The People’s Democratic Party (Nigeria) now has seven members
At least nine members of the Nigerian Senate on Thursday announced their decision to leave their former political parties and join the African Democratic Congress, further changing the party composition in the upper legislative chamber.
Among the lawmakers who declared for the party are Aminu Tambuwal, representing Sokoto South, Enyinnaya Abaribe of Abia South, Binos Yaroe from Adamawa South, Victor Umeh of Anambra Central, Tony Nwoye representing Anambra North, Lawal Usman of Kaduna Central, Ogoshi Onawo representing Nasarawa South, Austin Akobundu of Abia Central, and Ireti Kingibe from the Federal Capital Territory, Eko Hot Blog gathered.
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Their defection notices were presented during plenary and read to lawmakers by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
In his letter, Nwoye explained that his decision was influenced by the prolonged internal disputes and court cases affecting the Labour Party (Nigeria), which he said had weakened unity within the party.
Following the announcement, Akpabio welcomed the senators to their new platform and rejected claims that the governing All Progressives Congress was responsible for the wave of defections.
He noted that the lawmakers came from different opposition parties, including the All Progressives Grand Alliance, Labour Party and the Social Democratic Party (Nigeria), suggesting that internal disagreements within those parties had contributed to the political shift.
The latest movement highlights ongoing realignments in the Senate, where lawmakers have continued to switch affiliations amid disputes within several opposition groups.
Despite the changes, the APC still maintains a strong majority in the chamber with 87 senators. The Peoples Democratic Party (Nigeria) now has seven members, while the ADC has increased its representation to seven seats following the new defections.
Other minority parties in the Senate include the All Progressives Grand Alliance, New Nigeria Peoples Party and the National Democratic Congress, each represented by a single senator, bringing the total number of lawmakers in the chamber to 106.
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