The exit of Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso has triggered a massive wave of defections that has significantly weakened the African Democratic Congress across both chambers of the National Assembly. On Tuesday the National Democratic Congress recorded its biggest gains with the addition of seventeen House members and one senator just forty eight hours after the two prominent opposition figures formally dumped the ADC. These moves which include defectors from Kano Anambra Lagos Edo Rivers and Kogi states have fundamentally altered the opposition landscape ahead of the 2027 general elections. Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu while presiding over the plenary session noted that the lawmakers blamed the party’s instability for their departure stating that the crisis remained “unresolved starting from the ward to the national level.”
Senate President Godswill Akpabio openly derided the embattled party during the session declaring it “dead” as the fresh wave of defections swept through the parliament. “Resignation from ADC and declaration for Labour Party? Maybe all those defecting from ADC should compile everything in one paper and bring it, so that we don’t keep announcing, announcing, announcing. Because I think ADC is dead,” Akpabio said. Among the notable defectors was Senator Victor Umeh who joined the NDC citing “lingering divisions in the leadership and unending litigation” within the ADC. Umeh further defended the frequent party movements in Nigeria attributing them to weak institutional stability within the political system saying “Movement from party to party happens in Nigeria because of the lack of stability in our politics.”
The coordinated nature of the defections is widely interpreted as a show of loyalty to Obi and Kwankwaso whose switch to the NDC is already reshaping opposition dynamics in the South East and North West. The ADC which recently boasted twenty four members in the House of Representatives is now left with only six lawmakers. Despite the loss ADC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi insisted the party remains unperturbed by the development. “The people who left are idol worshippers, following their idols that they believe will help them to win the elections. We wish them good luck, but the core structures of our party remain intact,” he stated. Meanwhile Phrank Shaibu described the situation as “the unravelling of a poorly scripted political ambush designed to cripple opposition voices” as the NDC continues to position itself as the primary alternative to the ruling party.
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