Kebbi Senators’ Defection to APC Looms, PDP Scrambles to Prevent Exodus

• Three Kebbi State senators, Adamu Aliero, Yahaya Abubakar Abdullahi, and Garba Maidoki, are set to defect to the APC, following a meeting with President Bola Tinubu.

• The PDP is making frantic efforts to prevent the defection, with the state chairman summoning an emergency meeting to explore options.

The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kebbi State is making last-ditch efforts to prevent the planned defection of three serving senators to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Senators Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central), Yahaya Abubakar Abdullahi (Kebbi North), and Garba Maidoki (Kebbi South) are expected to formally declare their defection to the APC on Tuesday, following a high-level meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

The PDP State Chairman, Usman Bello-Suru, summoned an emergency meeting of party stakeholders on Friday night to halt the looming political exodus.

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According to a source at the meeting, members weighed multiple strategies, including obtaining a court injunction or making personal appeals to the lawmakers.

“Several options were explored, including legal steps, but it was agreed that the best approach would be to convince them to remain in the PDP and continue building what they’ve helped to establish over the years,” the source said.

However, efforts to reach the senators have proven difficult, with the source adding, “Since the defection news broke, they have stopped picking calls from the party chairman.”

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This crisis comes just weeks after Bello-Suru dismissed rumors of defection within the party, stating, “In a swift reaction to the insinuations that some members of the PDP in the state are making arrangements to defect to the ruling party, I assure our members that PDP remains one indivisible entity that will continue to play an opposition role in the state.”

Some party members remain stoic in the face of the crisis, with a senior PDP chieftain saying, “If they decide to leave, life goes on. PDP is like a military barracks, soldiers come, soldiers go, but the barracks remains.” If the defections go ahead as expected, the APC’s numerical strength in the 10th Senate will rise to 68, while the PDP will be reduced to 30.