PDP Reps kick as two lawmakers defect to APC

Members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the House of Representatives have kicked against the defection of two members of the party to the ruling party, All Progressives Congress, APC, on Tuesday.

The Deputy Minority Leader of the House, Toby Okechukwu, and others opposed the defection of two Cross Rivers State lawmakers, Lego Idagbo and Michael Etiaba, which was announced during the plenary on Tuesday.

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The Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, announced the defection at the plenary, saying that the two lawmakers have left the PDP and joined the APC.

However, members of the PDP said their defection was against the law.

Okechukwu noted that the House had added to the series of breaches of the law by accepting their defection.

Gbajabiamila, however, argued that the PDP members were not in the position to determine the circumstances of their defection, noting that only the Court could do that.

There has been a gale of defection in the PDP recently with some youths in the party calling for the National Chairman of the party to step aside.

It could be recalled that the Governor of Cross Rivers State, Ben Ayade, had also defected from the PDP to the APC recently.

Many of his aides and political office holders in the state as well as elected representatives have joined him to defect to the APC.

Earlier on Tuesday morning, the Senator representing Zamfara Central Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Senator Hassan Muhammed Nasiha announced his resignation from the PDP.

The lawmaker announced his resignation in a letter read on the floor of the Red Chamber by Senate President Ahmad Lawan at the resumption of plenary on Tuesday.

Senator Muhammed, in the letter, did not disclose the party he is joining but he is among the lawmakers from Zamfara State expected to follow the state governor, Bello Muhammad Matawalle to the APC.