By Peter Omopo
Former Kogi State governor, Idris Wada, has officially defected to the All Progressives Congress, joining several other political figures who dumped their parties for the ruling APC. The defectors were received on Monday by Vice President Kashim Shettima in Lokoja.
Others who crossed over include the 2023 deputy governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Kogi, Sam Abenemi, alongside prominent politicians drawn from various local government areas across the state.
Speaking at the reception, Vice President Shettima described the development as a significant boost for the APC, both in Kogi and at the national level.
“It gladdens my heart to see this day. I am pleased that good governance is at play in Kogi State. This is a new chapter in the life of APC in Kogi State and entire Nigeria,” Shettima said.
“I am particularly delighted to receive an elder statesman. Capt. Wada, we are the confluence of progressive together.”
He added that the influx of new members was “a coalition of who is who in Kogi State and Nigeria,” assuring the defectors that they would not regret joining the ruling party.
The Vice President also expressed confidence that the momentum in Kogi signalled strong support for President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 general election.
“The message from the Confluence State today is that President Ahmed Bola Tinubu’s victory in 2027 is total,” he declared.
Wada and others were subsequently presented with APC flags to formalise their entry.
Speaking on behalf of the defectors, Wada said joining the APC was the right decision, citing the party’s progressive ideology and President Tinubu’s economic reforms.
“There are so many reasons why I joined the APC. One, the party is a progressive one. Secondly, Tinubu himself has a very good vision for the country,” he said.
“Mr President did right by removing the oil subsidy. Since then, we see a drop in the price of food daily. The naira has appreciated against the dollar, the economy has picked up, and the President has taken the country out of a distressed economy.”
He added that the group was committed to supporting President Tinubu’s bid for re-election in 2027.
Wada had earlier picked up his APC membership card on Saturday in Odu, Dekina LGA. The former governor, who served from 2012 to 2016 under the PDP, failed in his re-election bid after a supplementary election following the death of APC candidate Abubakar Audu in 2015.
His defection follows a similar mass decamping of PDP and Labour Party leaders in Plateau State over the weekend, where Senate President Godswill Akpabio and other APC leaders welcomed new members into the party. Governor Usman Ododo, represented by his deputy at the Plateau event, described the wave of defections as evidence of the APC’s growing acceptance nationwide.
