Rowdy Session in Senate as Nine Senators Defect to ADC, Red Chamber Rejects Abaribe’s Letter

By Ugbede James Ankpa

The Nigerian Senate on Thursday witnessed a heated session following the rejection of Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe’s defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) from the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), alongside eight other senators who also dumped their original political parties for the ADC.

The senators who defected to ADC are: former Governor of Sokoto State, Senator Waziri Aminu Tambuwal (PDP, Sokoto South); Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe (APGA, Abia South); Senator Victor Umeh (LP, Anambra Central); Senator Tony Nwoye (LP, Anambra North); and Senator Onawo Mohammed Ogoshi (PDP, Nasarawa South).
Others include Senator Akor Bundu (PDP, Abia Central); Senator Usman Lawal Adamu (PDP, Kaduna Central); Senator Ireti Kingibe (LP, FCT); and Senator Binos Dauda Yaroe (PDP, Adamawa North East).
Former Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Seriake Dickson, representing PDP, Bayelsa West, also defected to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
Apparently seizing on a constitutional provision, the Senate leadership queried Abaribe on why the relevant section of the Constitution should not be invoked against him and his seat for Abia South declared vacant.
Specifically, as directed by the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, the Deputy Senate President, Senator Barau Jibrin (Kano North), rose under Order 20 of the Senate Standing Rules to challenge Abaribe’s defection from APGA, which he said was not experiencing any division or crisis at the national level.
“Mr President, as directed by you, I have gone through the letters forwarded to you and read on the floor regarding the defections of the nine senators from some minority parties to the ADC. I strongly observed that one of the parties, APGA, from which Abaribe defected, is not engulfed in any crisis or division, particularly at the national level.
“Abaribe’s defection, as clearly stated in Section 68 (1b and g) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, is against the provisions of the law and warrants you to do the needful as far as the Abia South senatorial seat is concerned,” he said.
He quoted the section which states that a member of the Senate or House of Representatives shall vacate his or her seat if certain circumstances arise, including defection from the party that sponsored the lawmaker without division within that party.
Following the observation, the Senate President called on Abaribe to respond.
In his response, Abaribe admitted that APGA was not divided but explained that the party had expelled him as a member since September 2025. He added that since a senator must belong to a political party to remain in the Senate, he decided to defect to another party.
Apparently dissatisfied with the explanation, the Senate Leader, Senator Michael Opeyemi Bamidele (Ekiti Central), argued that the alleged expulsion of Abaribe from APGA in September last year was itself sufficient grounds for his seat to be declared vacant under Section 68 (1b) of the Constitution.
Consequently, in his ruling, Senate President Akpabio gave Abaribe one week to either withdraw his letter of defection or provide convincing reasons to justify it.
Meanwhile, Senator Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa West), who last week founded and defected to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) from the PDP, formally confirmed the move through a letter read on his behalf by Akpabio.
The wave of defections has now made the ADC the main opposition party in the Senate with nine senators. The development has reduced the PDP to seven senators, while APGA has one, NNPP one, and NDC one. These, together with the 87 senators controlled by the APC, bring the total number of senators to 106.
Three seats — Nasarawa North, Enugu North, and Rivers South East — remain vacant following the deaths of the senators who previously occupied them.