Four Labour Party members in the House of Representatives have defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress on Thursday.
Tochukwu Okere (Imo), Donatus Mathew (Kaduna), Bassey Akiba (Cross River), and Iyawe Esosa (Edo) are among the lawmakers who defected from the LP to join the APC.
Similarly, Erthiatake Ibori-Suenu, the daughter of former Delta State Governor Mr James Ibori, has left the Peoples Democratic Party to join the All Progressives Congress.
Confirming the situation, Matthew, who represents Kaura Federal Constituency in Kaduna State, stated that the choice to defect to the APC was founded on conviction.
“You cannot just work on the decision of the people at the constituency level because you are dealing with people with different levels of understanding,” Matthew, who made history as a commercial motorcycle rider and won the parliamentary election in 2023, responded when asked if his constituency supports his impending defection.
“My conviction is the basis for this decision. Because of this, certain members of the constituency feel certain that defection is the best course of action for them, whether you agree with them or not. Some people are cynical and are awaiting the results,” he stated.
On Thursday, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas read their letter of defection to the APC on the Green Chamber floor.