9 Top Senators Join ADC in Massive Defection (FULL LIST)

On Thursday, nine senators from various political parties officially announced their defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC), marking a significant shift in the political landscape of the Senate.

The senators who joined the ADC include Aminu Tambuwal representing Sokoto South, Enyinnaya Abaribe from Abia South, Binos Yaroe of Adamawa South, Victor Umeh from Anambra Central, Tony Nwoye of Anambra North, Lawal Usman from Kaduna Central, Ogoshi Onawo representing Nasarawa South, Austin Akobundu of Abia Central, and Ireti Kingibe from the Federal Capital Territory.

During the Senate’s plenary session, Senate President Godswill Akpabio read their letters of defection. In his letter, Senator Nwoye cited internal crises within the Labour Party as the reason for his decision to switch parties.

“I wish to tender my resignation amid the ongoing multiple litigations within the Labour Party, which have significantly affected the cohesion and stability of the party.

“Please accept, Your Excellency, the assurances of my highest esteem and regards,” Nwoye’s defection read.

Reacting after reading the letters, Akpabio welcomed the lawmakers to their new political platform but dismissed suggestions that the ruling All Progressives Congress was responsible for the wave of defections.

He said, “Deputy Senate President and Leader of the Senate, I hope you noticed that I have read (defections) from three different political parties now. So, you cannot accuse the ruling party of tampering with its leadership. Here, we have APGA, Labour, SDP, and all of them.

“So, all of them have a problem. They’ve not been able to put their parties together. So, the APC cannot be blamed for this.

“They are all out to ensure that we have what you call a minority status in this chamber, and I am very proud of them.”

The latest defections further underscore the continuing political realignments in the 10th Senate, where lawmakers have repeatedly switched party allegiances amid internal disputes within several opposition parties.

As of Thursday, the APC retains a dominant majority with 87 senators, while the Peoples Democratic Party has dwindled to seven members.

The ADC, boosted by the latest defections, now has seven senators in the chamber.

Other minority parties include the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC), each of which has one senator, bringing the total membership of the Senate to 106.

The Labour Party and Social Democratic Party currently have no representation in the upper chamber following the latest defections.