How PDP, Others Lost 30 Federal Lawmakers to APC in Two Years

• The APC, which began the 10th House of Representatives with 178 members, has now secured a clear majority, increasing its seats to 205 following recent defections in the National Assembly
• This followed the recent development where the NNPP lost two representatives from Kano, while the PDP lost one from Osun to the ruling APC
• The APC has been criticised for luring the opposition members and trying to turn Nigeria into a one-party state, but the ruling party dismissed the allegations

Since its inauguration on June 13, 2023, the 10th National Assembly has witnessed significant changes as several members have defected to other parties.

The All Progressives Congress (APC), which began with 178 members, has increased its tally to 205 following a wave of defections that hit the opposition parties in the National Assembly.

Reps: Two NNPP members defect to APC

This development came amid the latest defection that rocked the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), where the party lost two of its representatives from Kano to the ruling APC.

According to The Nation, the defecting members are Kabiru Alhassan Rurum and Abdullahi Sani Rogo from the Karaye/Rogo and the Rano/Bunkure/Kibiya federal constituencies.

Last month, Wole Oke, the Osun federal lawmaker in the House of Representatives representing the Obokun/Oriade federal constituency, resigned from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and joined the APC. Oke is one of the ranking lawmakers in the House.

Abbas receives opposition members to APC

Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, who announced their defection during the plenary, received the defectors in the presence of the APC national chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje.

With the latest defection, the APC now has a comfortable 205 majority in the lower chamber of the National Assembly, while the seven opposition parties now have a total of 155 lawmakers.

Recall that the NNPP had 19 representatives at the inauguration of the House about two years ago, now has 16 members, as fear of defection still lingers within the opposition parties.

PDP members left in House of Representatives

On the other hand, the PDP, which is the main opposition party, began the 10th House of Representatives with 113 members but is now left with just 37.

In recent times, 30 members of the House of Representatives have changed their political parties since the 10th Assembly was inaugurated. The APC gained 27 of the defectors from the PDP, Labour Party, Alliance for Democratic Congress (ADC) and the NNPP.

The recent defection has started raising concerns with the allegations that the APC was coercing the lawmakers to join its fold in a bid to turn the country into a one-party state. On the other hand, the ruling party has denied the allegation, asking the opposition to fix their houses.

Oshiomhole knocks Atiku over defection comment

Legit.ng earlier reported that Adams Oshiomhole tackled former vice president Atiku Abubakar on the allegation that opposition senators joining the APC were coerced to do so.

According to Oshiomhole, Atiku has a great history of defection and urged the former vice president to write a book on defection.

Oshiomhole also alleged that the defection history was not influenced by any ideology but personal interest.

Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng