National Assembly defections see 12 lawmakers switch parties, with APC and ADC gaining members as political realignments reshape Nigeria’s parliament
Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu announced during plenary on Thursday that 12 members of the House of Representatives had defected to new political parties, marking a significant shift in Nigeria’s parliamentary landscape.
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Kalu told lawmakers that six legislators elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party had moved to the ruling All Progressives Congress.
Another six members from the Young Progressives Party and the Labour Party also switched allegiance to the African Democratic Congress.
The defections were formally read on the floor of the House during plenary, underscoring growing political realignments ahead of the next electoral cycle.
The latest developments follow a similar movement in the Senate earlier in the week. Senate President Godswill Akpabio on Wednesday announced that three senators had left the Peoples Democratic Party for the All Progressives Congress.
The senators include Ikra Bilbis, who represents Zamfara Central, Aminu Iya Abbas of Adamawa Central, and Amos Yohanna.
The parliamentary changes came shortly after four members of the House of Representatives had earlier defected from the Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party to the ruling party.
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The flurry of defections highlights mounting political recalculations within the National Assembly as parties position themselves for future contests and shifting alliances.
