New Telegraph

APC: Defection Tsunami imminent in Senate Caucus

•Ruling party’ll collapse soon –Senator Kaita

•We’re angry parties mishandled primaries –Senator Utazi

 

Fresh indications emerged over the weekend that the configuration of the Senate will alter drastically this week following a defection tsunami that appears imminent in the Caucus of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

 

Investigations carried out by the Sunday Telegraph, revealed that many aggrieved members of the ruling party are warming up to dump the platform and join other opposition parties in the Red Chamber. Reliable sources close to the Senate, told our Correspondent, that the APC would never recover from the perceived injustices meted to some of its members who participated in the just concluded party primaries across the country.

 

Since the Senate resumed plenary on June 14, after the party primaries, the Chamber has recorded a number of defections and resignations from members, who became disgruntled after they failed to actualise their ambitions to secure return tickets to the Upper Chamber or ticket for another office.

 

Between June 14 when the Senate resumed plenary and the last legislative day, Friday June 22, 2022, not less than eight Senators have dumped the APC and joined different opposition parties, with each politician citing lack of internal party democracy in the ruling party as the reason for defecting.

 

Some of the APC Senators, who defected included the former Leader of the Senate, Senator Yahaya Abdullahi, (Kebbi North), Senator, Adamu Alierio (Kebbi Central), Senator, Baaba Kaita from Katsina State, Senator, Francis Alimikhena (Edo North) and Senator, Dauda Jika (Bauchi Central).

 

They all defected to the opposition PDP. Also, the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), is equally having its share of the gale of defection in the Senate, with the former Minority Leader, Enyinnaya Abaribe, defecting to the APC, where he was given return ticket for the Abia South Senatorial District election in 2023.

 

Other PDP Senators who have dumped the party include Kola Balogu (Oyo State) Ezenwa Onyewuchi (Imo State) and Bassey Akpan (Akwa Ibom State). Just like their counterparts in the APC, they accused their governors of hijacking the Party structure in the states, lamenting that lack of internal party democracy had become the order of the day.

 

Following the on-going defections taking place in the Senate, the ruling All Progressives Congress has 61 members; PDP 38, NNPP 3; YPP 2, Labour Party 1; APGA 1 while three seats are vacant.

 

Confirming that the gale of defection was not yet over, the new Senate Minority Whip, Senator Chukwuka Utazi, while speaking to Sunday Telegraph on recent developments in the Senate, explained that the gale of defections across political parties was a fallout of last primary elections of parties in the country. Utazi pointed out that it was the outcome of misunderstanding and improper handling of issues during the primary elections of parties, expressing reservations on the level of democracy being practiced during the exercise.

 

“All I know is that with the way things happened in the last primaries of most political parties, what we are seeing now is not a surprise. It is the outcome of such misunderstanding, improper handling of issues that has given rise to this gale of defections not just one side, both sides. “As far as we are concerned, there is still movement back and forth.

 

So, this movement back and forth will not stop now until August, when we will finish the Electoral Act window for change or substitution of candidates; not until then” he said.

 

 

Speaking in a similar direction, the new Senate Minority Leader, Senator Philip Aduda, expressed optimism that the Peoples Democratic Party’s Senate Caucus, would form majority in the Senate in 2023, with the gale of defection going on in the APC Senate Caucus. Aduda, while acknowledging that there would definitely be challenges to be confronted by the opposition, said that those challenges would be surmounted, saying: “I can assure you, we will ensure we give meaningful leadership to the minority in the Senate.”

 

“There are a lot of challenges as 2023 approaches; we will manage them. This is the season you have aggrieved members from all sides, various defection by those who are aggrieved and those who got their parties’ tickets. Also, corroborating the impending mass defection in the Senate, Senator Baaba Kaita, regretted that the ruling party had laid the foundation for self-destruction, lamenting that the party rather than solve the problems for which the PDP was voted out in 2015, had worsened the situation.

 

His words: “My defection has to do with the crisis of APC and gladly, it’s not only me but so many people who are part and parcel of the foundation of the APC. “We came with the intention of reforming the ills that were done by the PDP but we have surpassed PDP in those ills as at today.

 

You will agree with me as Nigerians who have been participating in political development of this country, what the APC as a party has done. “I regretted my action of  defection because of only one person (That is Mr. President). Otherwise, the decision I took is for the good of the people I represent, the good of the Senate and the good of my country.

 

“I believe APC will collapse. It’s just a matter of time. I’m not speculating; I have been in this game for almost 20 years now and I know that the same road that PDP took to its sudden death is the same route APC is taking now.

 

“So, there is nothing APC can do at this point to salvage itself. It has so many chances of redeeming itself, but all the warning signs they have just deliberately decided to ignore.

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