‘Twenty-Two APC Senators Set To Decamp To PDP’, Seeks Senate President, Deputy Position

There’s a potential shift on the horizon within Nigeria’s Senate, according to a credible Senator from the Northwest, that spoke with Daily Sun.

A total of 22 senators from the All Progressives Congress (APC) are allegedly planning to defect to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

If true, this could hand the PDP majority control in the Senate.

These APC senators are believed to be planning to align themselves with colleagues who support Senator Abdulaziz Abubakar Yari.

Yari previously ran for the position of Senate President but lost to Senator Godswill Akpabio.

The source reports that the group of 22 senators have held several meetings in Abuja and London to solidify their decision to defect to the PDP.

Currently, the APC holds the majority in the Senate with 59 out of 109 seats.

The PDP has 36, and other parties share the remainder. However, the alleged defection would increase the PDP’s seats to 58 and reduce the APC’s to 37, turning the PDP into the majority party in the Senate.

According to the source, the defecting senators have agreed to cede the position of Senate President, currently held by Senator Akpabio, to one of their own upon joining the PDP.

The party’s senators would assume the roles of Majority Leader, Chief Whip, and Deputy Chief Whip.

The election for the 10th Senate President, held on June 13, ended with Akpabio securing 63 votes against Yari’s 46.

Now, a group of senators plans to challenge the results in court, claiming manipulation of the supposed secret ballot.

The source added that the potential defectors, who hail from across the country’s six geopolitical zones, are watching the distribution of principal offices and committee chairmanship positions, as well as the outcomes of their court cases, before proceeding with their plans.