It was a sad day for the Labour Party as four of its members in the House of Representatives defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
One of the defectors was the popular motorcycle rider, Mathew Donatus representing Kaura federal constituency of Kaduna who shocked Nigerians with his victory at the polls in 2023.
He, like others, won their elections on the back of the popularity of former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, who was the party’s presidential candidate during the elections.
The party since gaining prominence in 2023 after winning many elective positions has suffered defections more than any other party.
While the battle for the leadership position of the party rages, members elected are cashing in on the crisis and jumping the ship.
On Thursday, Speaker Abbas Tajudeen announced during plenary that four of the reps on the platform of the party indicated interest through official letters to defect to the APC.
The lawmakers are Chinedu Okere (Owerri municipal/owerri north/Owerri west constituency), Mathew Donatus (Kaura federal constituency of Kaduna), Akiba Bassey (Calabar municipal/Odukpani constituency), and Esosa Iyawe (Oredo federal constituency of Edo).
Also, Mr James Ibori’s daughter, Erthiatake Ibori-Suenu, has dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also for the APC.
Her letter was also read on the floor on Thursday.
Confirming the development, Matthew said the decision to defect to the APC is based on conviction.
He said, “You cannot just work on the decision of the people at the constituency level because you are dealing with people with different levels of understanding.
“I am taking this decision based on conviction. That is why whether you like it or not, there are people within the constituency who are convinced that it (defection) is the right decision for them. There are those who are skeptical waiting for the outcome,” he said.