About 23 members of the House of Representatives under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are set to dump the main opposition party for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Daily Trust learnt on Tuesday.
The prospective defectors, it was gathered, were uncomfortable with alleged manipulations by their state governors to “anoint new candidates” in place of the incumbent “seasoned legislators.”
States said to be affected by the planned defection include Gombe, Benue, Kogi, Enugu, Ekiti, Anambra, Cross River, and others whose lawmakers are at loggerheads with their governors.
A source privy to the planned mass defection revealed that, as an indication that all is not well with the PDP, meetings of committees saddled with the responsibility of ensuring a smooth consensus primary election across the states were deadlocked last week without any reasonable outcome.
The source further disclosed that the APC is already dangling automatic tickets to lure the aggrieved lawmakers into their fold, should they perfect their plans to cross over to the ruling party.
“We want to leave not because it is our wish but the governors have pushed us to the wall.
“We have fought physically and mentally to defend the PDP and democracy. Despite our commitment to the party, see what the governors are doing to us,” the source said rather emotionally.
To perfect their plans, the affected lawmakers are said to be currently pushing for an earlier resumption from the ongoing annual recess of the National Assembly, as against the already speculated date of October 9.
However, efforts to reach the Chairman, PDP caucus and Deputy Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Chukwuka Onyema (PDP, Anambra) to comment on the development, were not successful as his lines were said to be switched off.
