There are reports that 22 senators from the All Progressives Congress (APC) are planning to defect to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which would give the opposition party a majority in the Senate.
The move is said to be a result of an alliance between the APC senators and those loyal to Senator Abdul’aziz Abubakar Yari, who lost out to Senator Godswill Akpabio in the Senate President election.
The 22 senators have reportedly held meetings in Abuja and London to solidify their commitment to switching allegiances.
Currently, out of the 109 legislators in the Senate, the APC holds 59 seats, while the PDP has 36.
The remaining seats are distributed among other parties.
Should the 22 APC senators proceed with their plan, the PDP’s numbers would rise to 58, reducing the APC to 37, effectively establishing the PDP as the majority party in the Senate.
To execute their strategy, the PDP senators have agreed to offer the position of Senate President to one of the 22 senators defecting from the APC, as well as the role of Deputy Senate President.
The PDP has offered the position of Senate President and Deputy Senate President to one of the defecting senators, while securing the positions of Majority Leader, Chief Whip, and Deputy Chief Whip for themselves.
This exclusion of senators not aligned with Akpabio from committee selections has further strengthened the resolve of the 22 senators to support the PDP in taking leadership in the Senate.
Senator Akpabio, if you recall, emerged victorious with just 17 votes against Senator Yari’s 46 during the 10th Senate presidential election on June 13.
Article updated 2 months ago. Content is written and modified by multiple authors.
