Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, who represents Abia South, has dismissed suggestions he could defect to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), insisting he would be the last politician in Nigeria to do so.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, the former Abia deputy governor said the current wave of defections to the APC did not reflect popular support for the party or the federal government.
“If there’s anybody that’s going to defect to APC, I think I should be the very last one. By the time I will defect, it means there will be no political parties in Nigeria, including the APC,” Abaribe said.
His remarks come amid a series of high-profile defections from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), with governors of Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Enugu, Delta, Rivers and Taraba states recently crossing over to the ruling party.
Abaribe questioned the rationale behind the defections, noting that many of the governors had opposed President Bola Tinubu during the 2023 general election.
“Now ask yourself, in all the states where there are defections, what is going on there?
“These governors were in the opposition, worked against Tinubu in 2023, and then all of a sudden, the same governors defect and you hand over the party to them,” he said.
The senator argued that worsening economic conditions and insecurity had eroded public confidence in the Tinubu administration, claiming Nigerians were increasingly determined to vote the president out in 2027.
He said it would be impossible for Tinubu to secure a second term, asserting that the president lacked sufficient support across the country.
“Everybody loses elections, and you will see when the time comes. He will lose in 2027 because I know what Nigerians are feeling outside,” he said.
Abaribe further maintained that Tinubu did not genuinely win the 2023 election but was accepted as president following the official declaration.
“We acknowledged him as president, but we are going to meet him in the field,” he said, adding that opposition forces and voters would be better prepared next time.
The lawmaker concluded that with the economy struggling and insecurity unresolved, it was unclear where the president would find the votes needed to return to office.
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