Akpabio says ADC is dead as Senators, House of Rep members abandon party defect to others Parties

Akpabio says ADC is dead as Senators, House of Rep members abandon party defect to others Parties

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, on Tuesday sparked reactions in the Senate after joking that the African Democratic Congress (ADC) had effectively collapsed, following a fresh wave of defections by lawmakers to other political parties.

Akpabio made the remark while presiding over plenary, shortly after the chamber announced a series of defections, including that of Victor Umeh, who joined the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), citing internal crises and legal disputes within the ADC.

“Resignation from ADC and declaration for Labour Party. Maybe all those defecting from ADC should just compile everything in one paper and bring, so that we don’t keep announcing, announcing, announcing.

Because I think ADC is dead,” Akpabio said, drawing reactions from lawmakers.

He continued in a lighter tone, questioning the increasing frequency of defections within a short period.

“How many times can you defect in a month? Once. But some have done three times,” he said.

The Senate President suggested that lawmakers adopt a more coordinated approach in announcing defections to avoid what he described as a repetitive exercise on the Senate floor.

“So that it doesn’t look like a daily ritual. If you are defecting from Labour, you write all of you. If you are moving from ADC, you write all of you. If you are entering NDC, you write all of you,” he added.

During the session, Akpabio also read a defection letter from Enyinnaya Abaribe, highlighting his movement across parties in recent years.

“Note that Senator Abaribe has moved from APGA to ADC, and now he has moved from ADC to Labour Party,” he said, while hinting that such announcements may no longer be read individually going forward.

The development comes amid broader political realignments in the National Assembly, where at least 16 members of the House of Representatives have also defected from the ADC to the NDC.

Among those listed are Yusuf Datti, Uchenna Okonkwo, Thaddeus Attah, George Ozodinobi, and Lilian Orogbu, among others.

In his resignation letter, Umeh attributed his decision to persistent internal disputes within the ADC.

“I remain committed to making my contributions towards the development of our dear nation, but this time through the NDC,” he wrote.