Six members of the House of Representatives from Oyo State have defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), in a move seen as a significant boost for the party’s growing influence in the state.
The defections were announced during plenary on Tuesday as the House resumed legislative activities following the Sallah break. Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, who presided over the session, read the letters conveying the lawmakers’ decision to change their party affiliation.
The lawmakers include Anthony Adebayo Adepoju, representing Ibarapa North Federal Constituency; Adedeji Stanley Olajide, representing Ibadan North-West/Ibadan South-West Federal Constituency; and Makanjuola Sunday Ojo, representing Ogo-Oluwa/Surulere Federal Constituency.
Others are Najimdeen Oyeshina Oyedeji of Iseyin/Itesiwaju/Kajola/Iwajowa Federal Constituency, Folajimi Oyekunle of Ibadan North Federal Constituency, and Abass Adekunle Adigun of Ibadan North-East/Ibadan South-East Federal Constituency.
The defections come weeks after Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde joined the APM and was subsequently ratified as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.
Meanwhile, the Speaker also read a letter announcing the defection of the House Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda, from the PDP to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Following the announcement, Chinda formally resigned from his position as Minority Leader.
Chinda, a close ally of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, recently secured the APC governorship ticket for Rivers State ahead of the 2027 governorship election.
The latest defections underscore the shifting political landscape ahead of the 2027 elections, with parties intensifying efforts to strengthen their ranks and expand their influence across the country.
