- Safiu Kehinde
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has suffered another major setback as all three Kebbi State Senators defected from the opposition party to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
This is coming barely a month after the mass exodus of all PDP stakeholders in Delta state, led by the state governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, to the ruling party.
In the same vein, Sen. Adamu Ailero (Kebbi Central), Sen. Yahaya Abdullahi (Kebbi North), and Sen. Garba Madoki (Kebbi South) decamped from the PDP to the APC .
The trio announced their defection in separate letters presented before the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, during the Red Chamber’s plenary session on Tuesday.
On the reason behind their defection, the lawmakers held that the PDP had become disconnected from the aspirations of the Nigerians it seeks to lead.
In the letter read by Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, Aliero noted that his the decision to quit the PDP was borne out of the party’s internal divisions, lack of ideological clarity and inability to provide a credible forward-looking agenda.
“I have made the decision to formally resign my membership of the Peoples Democratic Party and rejoin the All Progressive Party (APC) of which I was a founding member.
“This decision was not made lightly. I’ve been a proud member of the PDP, a party under whose platform I was elected to serve.
“However, politics must never be about personal loyalty to a platform; it will always be about service, solutions and results.
“Today, I made this move in response to a simple question that every responsible leader must ask himself or herself: what is best for the people I serve?
“Over the past month, that has become increasingly, I mean firstly, clear to me, that PDP, as it currently stands, has become disconnected from the aspirations of the very Nigerians it seeks to lead.
“Internal divisions, lack of ideological clarity and inability to provide a credible forward-looking agenda have made it difficult for leaders like me to pursue the reform and development agenda that our people deserve,” he said.
According to report, Aliero further stated that APC, on the other hand, had shown signs of transformation, especially under its renewed hope agenda.
He maintained that the APC offered a more viable platform through which he could effectively serve his constituents and advocate for progressive policies.
“Nigeria must move forward and today, I move forward with the people for the people and in the interest of our shared future,” he said.
Similarly, Maidoki also attributed his defection to the lingering crisis in PDP and his belief that the ideals of APC better aligned with his political aspirations.
“This will enable me to participate fully in the renewed hope for the benefit of my senatorial district and Nigeria at large.
“When I was sworn in as a senator in June 2023, more than 100 villages in my senatorial district were occupied by bandits and in constant fear of kidnappings, rape and cattle rustling.
“To the glory of God, the deployment of troops in part of my constituency has played significant roles in proactive security of the area and my people have almost all returned back and farming peacefully,” he said.
On his part, Abdullahi, a former member of the APC, said that he was rejoining the ruling party in order to contribute his quota to the developmental strides of the President Bola Tinubu-led administration and that of Gov. Nasir Idris of Kebbi.
“Recall, on June 14, 2022, I withdrew my membership of the APC and resigned my position as the leader of the ninth Senate following political disagreements in my state.
“I am happy to note that those disagreements have been effectively resolved by the incumbent governor.
“I, therefore, have no reason whatsoever not to go back to APC, particularly, since I am one of the major architects of its formation and successes. For me, going back to the APC is a home-coming event.
“It is also politically imperative for me to join Mr President, Bola Tinubu.
Reacting to the development, the Leader of the Senate, Opeyemi Bamidele, noted that no one was being coerced into joining the ruling party.
“If anyone will be coerced, it is not Sen. Aliero, it wouldn’t be Sen. Yahaya Abdulahi that will be coerced; neither is it Sen. Maidoki who had also made a mark at the private sector before he joined politics.
“They are not in politics so that they can feed; but they recognise the fact that this is not the time for us to grandstand. This is the time for all of us to work together to take Nigeria to the next level.
“And I say it again, those who refer to this parliament as a rubber stamp should know that we are at a very critical stage of our national life when all hands must be on deck.
“It will not matter what party you belong to. What will matter to you is the overriding public interest,” Mr Bamidele said.