Three senators elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), further reducing the opposition party’s representation in the Senate.
The defecting lawmakers are Amos Yunana (Adamawa North), Aminu Iya Abbas (Adamawa Central), and Ikra Aliyu Bilbis (Zamfara Central).
Their defection came barely 24 hours after Senator Banigo Ipalibo (Rivers West) also announced her move to the APC.
With the latest development, the PDP’s membership in the Senate has dropped from 17 to 14, while the APC’s strength has increased from 81 to 84 members. The party had 35 senators at the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly in June 2023.
President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, read the letters of defection during plenary and described the development as a reversal of the situation that played out in 2018.
Akpabio said, “What is happening now between PDP and APC senators is more of a 1–1 draw. In 2018, about 30 senators defected from APC to PDP in one day. Now it is the other way round, with PDP senators defecting en masse to APC, thanks to the good governance and bold reforms of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
Also reacting, Senate Leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, welcomed the lawmakers to the ruling party, saying their decision reflects growing confidence in the administration.
“The defectors are not daft; they have seen that something is working in the country for the good of all, and they want to be part of it,” Bamidele said.
The latest defections come amid recent political realignments ahead of the 2027 general elections and follow the reported defection of the governors of Adamawa State, Ahmadu Fintiri, and Zamfara State, Dauda Lawal, to the APC.
The PDP has continued to grapple with internal leadership disputes, which observers say have contributed to the growing wave of defections from the party.