The All Progressives Congress (APC) further consolidated its dominance in the Senate on Tuesday following the defection of two Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senators from Rivers State, increasing the ruling party’s strength in the 109-member chamber to 79 senators.
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The defectors are Senator Allwell Onyesoh, representing Rivers East Senatorial District and Chairman of the Senate Committee on Federal Character and Inter-Governmental Affairs, and Senator Barinada Mpigi, representing Rivers South-East Senatorial District.
Their defection was formally announced during plenary after the Senate suspended its rules to allow the National Secretary of the APC, Senator Ajibola Basiru, and other party officials into the chamber to witness the event.
Both lawmakers, previously seen as loyalists of former Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, cited deep-seated internal divisions, factionalisation, and unresolved leadership crises within the PDP as the primary reasons for leaving the party.
Reacting to the development, Senate Leader Senator Opeyemi Bamidele said the defections demonstrate that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration is working in the best interest of Nigerians.
“The growing wave of defections into the APC reflects public confidence in the President’s policies and leadership,” Bamidele said. He dismissed fears of a one-party state, assuring that APC senators would continue to work harmoniously with remaining minority lawmakers to deliver results in food security, healthcare, and living standards.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio welcomed the defectors, assuring them of equal rights and privileges within the ruling party.
“Anybody who enters our party enjoys equal privileges with those who have been here from the beginning. The joy of Nigerians is that politics is becoming sweeter,” Akpabio said, jokingly adding to Minority Leader Abba Moro: “Senator Moro, I sympathise with you.”
APC senators celebrated the new members, congratulated them, and posed for group photographs with the Senate President and party officials.
Speaking for the opposition, Senate Minority Leader Senator Abba Moro acknowledged the defectors’ constitutional right to freedom of association but raised concerns over procedural fairness and democratic norms.
“When there are too many people in a boat mid-way in the sea, there is always the possibility of that boat capsizing,” Moro warned, highlighting what he described as the imminent collapse of the PDP. He also criticized the ruling party’s self-congratulation, calling it a “dangerous drift for Nigeria’s democracy.”
The defections follow Senator Sunday Marshall Katung’s recent move from the PDP to the APC, which had earlier increased the ruling party’s numbers to 77. With the addition of Senators Onyesoh and Mpigi, the APC now controls 79 seats in the Senate, while the PDP’s representation continues to shrink. Other parties in the chamber include the Labour Party, APGA, SDP, and NNPP.
Beyond the National Assembly, the PDP has experienced multiple high-profile defections across several states, with defectors blaming internal crises and parallel leadership structures. The latest developments strengthen the APC’s legislative influence and raise questions over the opposition’s cohesion ahead of future elections.
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