The Labour Party (LP) has lost five of its lawmakers in the House of Representatives to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Those who defected are Esosa Iyawe (Edo), Tochukwu Okere (Imo), Donatus Matthew (Kaduna), Bassey Akiba (Cross River), and Daulyop Fom (Plateau).
Another lawmaker, Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu from Delta State, left the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to join the APC.
Erthiatake is the daughter of former Delta State Governor, Mr James Ibori.
Their letter of defection to the APC was read on the floor of the Green Chamber by the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas on Thursday.
Confirming the development, Matthew, who represents Kaura Federal Constituency of Kaduna State, said the decision to defect to the APC is based on conviction.
Asked if his imminent defection has the backing of his Constituency, Matthew who made history when he won the parliamentary election in 2023 as a commercial motorcycle rider 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.
The Labour Party made big gains in the 2023 elections, winning over 34 House of Representatives seats and six Senate positions.
This was a huge improvement compared to 2019 when it did not win any seats.
However, after the elections, disagreements within the party have caused problems.
These defections show that the Labour Party is struggling to stay united, even after its strong performance earlier in the year.
Many had hoped it would become a strong opposition, but internal issues are making that difficult.
