Recent comments credited to Akwa Ibom State Governor, Umo Eno, that he would have preferred to remain in the Peoples Democratic Party suggests that undue pressure is being mounted on him to defect to the ruling All Progressives Congress,  writes

R

Indications that Governor Eno would find his 2027 reelection bid on the PDP platform difficult had emerged when the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, declared authoritatively in January 2024, that the APC would produce the next governor of the state.

Speaking at a meeting of the APC leaders in Uyo, Akpabio said it would be an aberration for him as the number three citizen of Nigeria not to have a governor from his party at the end of next elections.

“You know, wherever the Senate president is, that is where the party is. Is it possible that Nigeria will give Akwa Ibom the number three citizen and at the end of the election, it will not produce an APC governor?” he asked.

Akpabio’s earlier declaration and Eno’s current lamentations suggest that pressure is mounting on the governor from certain quarters to defect or lose his reelection bid.

Apart from the governors, the National Assembly is not spared of the defections with several lawmakers shifting their allegiance to the ruling APC. It is believed that many of the opposition lawmakers are assured of their return to the two legislative chambers if they defected to the ruling party.

The National Assembly is made up of 109 senators and 360 members of the House of Representatives. At the beginning of the 10th Assembly in June 2023 under the leadership of Akpabio, the APC secured control of 59 seats in the Senate and 175 in the House. The opposition parties, on the other hand, controlled 50 Senate and 182 House seats.

In the Senate, the PDP had 36 seats, LP eight, and other minor parties held the remaining six.

In the House of Representatives, the PDP had 118 members, LP 35, NNPP 19, and others held the remaining seats, with two seats vacant.

Since July 2023, the wave of defections has weakened the opposition, with at least 38 lawmakers – eight senators and 30 House members – switching to the ruling APC, further strengthening its grip on both chambers.

Several sources from the opposition and the ruling APC confirmed former governors were promised ministerial positions, while current governors were assured of return tickets, as well as the opportunity to choose their successors and nominate National Assembly members.

However, as the APC is rejoicing for the defection of members and leaders of the opposition parties to its fold, the opposition political parties have taken consolation in the fact that despite the massive support given to Tinubu by 25 governors in 2023, he defeated his opponents in only 12 out of the 36 states.