Mass Defection Looms In APC As 5 Governors, 28 Senators Join Forces With Npdp

Aggrieved members of the All Progressives Congress, APC, who constitute the new People’s Democratic Party, nPDP bloc in the ruling party appear set to re-enact their pre-2015 election feat that led to the destabilization and eventual defeat of the then ruling party, PDP.

This time however, the APC may be the loser as leaders of the nPDP bloc will soon lead hundreds of their followers and supporters out of the ruling party back to the PDP at the “injury time.” Beside Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki and Speaker, House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, Saturday Sun gathered authoritatively that five serving APC governors, 28 Senators and 70 members of the green chamber of the National Assembly have joined forces with the nPDP bloc to move en masse from the APC in a matter of weeks.

Reliable sources within the group reported  in Abuja on Friday that two of the serving governors are from North Central, another two from North East and one from North West (Their names withheld by us). It was further learnt that talks are still on to get at least three more APC governors to bring the total number to eight.

The calculation within the group, it was also gathered, is to move into PDP and have at least equal number of state governors with the APC, if not more ahead of the 2019 polls. By the arrangement, the bloc will also give PDP the majority in both chambers of the National Assembly.

Two dates have already been set for the mass defection. The first is immediately after the APC national convention at the end of this month. The party had in May scheduled the convention for Saturday, June 23.

A statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi also added that “inauguration of new party executives will subsequently hold on Monday, June 25, 2018”. The party has had difficulty picking a date for its convention with the exercise having being postponed about five times in one year. Before now, the party had reportedly settled for June 2 for its national convention but some stakeholders were said to have pushed for the new date.

If the mass defection fails after June 25, leaders of the bloc alongside their supporters will announce their decision towards the end of July, when lawmakers will embark on their annual break.

Rainbowgist