Tom Zaneni, Abuja
The Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Emomotimi Guwor, and 21 other lawmakers elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party have defected to the All Progressives Congress.
Guwor, who announced the development on Tuesday at the resumption of plenary as the House reconvened after the Easter break, said their decision was the outcome of extensive consultations with their constituents and political leaders across the state.
Before their defection, the 29-member legislature was made up of 22 PDP lawmakers and seven APC legislators. With the current development, the Delta House of Assembly has become an all-APC legislature.
Their jumping of the ship happened two weeks after the state Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, his immediate-past predecessor, Ifeanyi Okowa, and some others dumped the PDP for the APC.
Oborevwori, Okowa and other PDP defectors were received by the Abdullahi Ganduje-led national leadership of the APC at a grand reception ceremony in Asaba, the state capital, on April 28, 2025.
The speaker said their move was in line with Section 109 of the 1999 Constitution as, amended.
He commended the legislators for their contributions so far, and called for the completion and passing of all pending bills as the second legislative session nears its end.
Guwor explained that the political shift towards the APC was in response to the realignment of stakeholders and the need to align with the government at the centre under President Bola Tinubu’s leadership.
He said, “The mass defection of members of the Peoples Democratic Party, led by Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, to the All Progressives Congress was made in the overall interest of Deltans and the state.
“We are fully committed to partnering with the Federal Government to deliver greater development to Deltans.
“On behalf of the House, I commend the courage and visionary leadership of our Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, in making this strategic and timely decision.
“As a legislative body, we stand with His Excellency in this endeavour. This renewed partnership between the state and Federal Government must be supported and allowed to flourish, so that we can begin to enjoy its benefits in the shortest possible time.”
Guwor further informed the House that he had received 22 letters, including his own, notifying of the lawmakers’ change of party from the PDP to the APC.
He said their defection was driven by the instability within the PDP’s national leadership and factional divisions within the party’s South-South Zonal Executive Committee, leading to internal conflicts and disunity within the party.
Citing Section 109(1)(g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), the Speaker affirmed the constitutional basis for the defection.
“With this action, the Delta State House of Assembly is now composed entirely of members from the All Progressives Congress. We thank our constituents for endorsing this progressive course of action”, he said.
A motion to adopt the notification letters of party change was moved by the Majority Leader, Emeka Nwaobi and seconded by Ferguson Onwo (Isoko South II).
In an interview with journalists after the plenary, Nwaobi reiterated that the defection was prompted by the crisis within the PDP.
He said, “Our decision was based on the instability at the national level (of the PDP) and the factionalization (of the party) at the South-South level. Consequently, we chose to move to the ruling All Progressives Congress, in accordance with Section 109 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended”.
