The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has dismissed the impact of Governor Peter Mbah’s defection to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), insisting that the party’s strength lies in the people rather than in individual politicians.
The PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, made this known during an appearance on Arise Television’s ‘Prime Time’ on Tuesday, hours after Governor Mbah and his cabinet members formally dumped the PDP for the APC.
Mbah’s defection marks the latest in a series of high-profile moves by PDP governors to the ruling party this year. Earlier, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State and Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State joined the APC in April and June, respectively — both citing internal crises within the PDP and the desire to align their states with the federal government.
“PDP’s Strength Is with the People, Not Governors”
Ologunagba maintained that the defection of governors does not diminish the PDP’s political strength, stressing that the party remains rooted in the will of the people.
“The PDP is not in coma, it’s not in a vegetative state. Yes, we have challenges some of which are external but more damaging are those within. Still, we are working that rope surely towards our convention,” he said.
He argued that the recent wave of defections was not driven by ideology or policy differences but by “personal interest, inducement, intimidation, and coercion” allegedly engineered by the APC to destabilize the opposition ahead of its national convention scheduled for November in Ibadan.
“APC Behind Defection Gale”
“What we see today is not about governance or ideology,” Ologunagba said. “People are defecting because of inducement, intimidation, and coercion. It’s a calculated strategy by the ruling party to weaken the PDP ahead of our convention.”
Despite the defections, the PDP spokesman expressed optimism that the party would bounce back stronger, reaffirming the opposition’s resolve to reclaim power in future elections.
“With or without governors, the strength of the PDP will come to the fore in the 2027 election,” Ologunagba declared.
He added that ongoing reforms and reconciliation efforts within the party would soon yield positive results, positioning the PDP for a strong comeback on the national stage.
