The Senate has formally received four lawmakers who have defected from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), further strengthening the party’s hold on the upper chamber.
The defectors include: Senator Ekong Samson (Akwa Ibom South), Senator Etim Bassey (Akwa Ibom North East), Senator Francis Fadahunsi (Osun East), and Senator Olubiyi Fadeyi (Osun Central).
The Senate subsequently relaxed its rules to allow the presence of some high-profile APC officials, including the party’s National Secretary, Ajibola Basiru; Chairman of the APC in Osun State, Tajudeen Lawal; members of the House of Representatives, and former Minister, Chris Ngige, who were in the chamber to witness the wave of defections.
With this latest shift, the APC now commands 70 seats in the 10th Senate, up from the 50 seats it held at the commencement of the current Assembly in June 2023.