Senate President Confirms Defection Of Three PDP Senators To APC

Lawmakers during plenary at the Senate chamber in Abuja February 12, 2020. Photo: Twitter-@NGRSenate.

The Senate President, Ahmad Lawan has confirmed the defection of three senators from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Senator Peter Nwaoboshi of Delta North who had earlier announced his defection to the APC is among the new lawmakers in the ranks of the ruling party.

Others are Sahabi Ya’u of Zamfara North and Lawali Anka who represents Zamfara West.

Senator Lawan read out the letter conveying the lawmakers’ intention of moving to the APC during the plenary session on Wednesday.

The senators cited the crisis in the country’s main opposition party as the reason for their defection.

A Wave Of Defections

The PDP says it is not bothered by the recent defections from the party and will reclaim the presidential seat in 2023.

There has been a wave of defections from the PDP in recent times. In less than two months, two governors from the party had joined the APC, claiming their move was in the best interest of the country.

But the PDP says it is not bothered by the defections, insisting it is in good stead to retake power from the ruling party in 2023.

“We stand here to state clearly that we will form the next government come 2023 because of the masses, not the governors who are leaving the PDP,” the national chairman of the party, Uche Secondus said during a press conference in Abuja on Tuesday.

The PDP leader who accused the APC of “poaching governors” from the party and intimidating them to join the ruling party, urged the APC to focus on repositioning the country’s economy and making life better for Nigerians.

“I have never seen a country where you have an economic crisis, [and] insecurity then the ruling party goes poaching governors… It is a shame that all the governors left for fear; they were intimidated by the instrument of the government of the APC,” Secondus said.