Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha has assured APC faithful that the defections they saw in the last one week, they shall see no more.
Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has assured APC faithful and the rest of the country that the gale of defections they just witnessed, won’t continue.
16 senators and 3 state governors began dumping the APC on July 24; with political pundits positing that the defections portend grave danger for a governing party whose leader, Buhari, faces a major re-election battle in 2019.
Governors Samuel Ortom of Benue, Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto and Abdulfatah Ahmed of Kwara have since dumped the APC for the PDP.
On July 31, Senate President Bukola Saraki,who is the 3rd most powerful politician in Nigeria’s leadership hierarchy, also left the APC for the PDP.
No cause for alarm
After the APC governors who are yet to defect, held a meeting with President Buhari on Wednesday, August 1, 2018, Okorocha assured that there is no more cause for alarm within the governing party.
“This is politics, it is unfortunate that they have to go”, Okorocha said, while disclosing to State House correspondents that the mass defections was top of the agenda during the meeting with the president.
Okorocha also said the defections are indicative of corruption fighting back
“We have 22 states, 53 senators now. Nobody is leaving the party anymore. Those who have left, we were aware that they will leave long ago.
“President Buhari means well and he is willing to fight corruption and you all know if you are fighting corruption, it will fight back.
“This is what’s happening,’’ he said.
Roll call
Among the governors who attended the meeting were Gov. Abubakar Badaru of Jigawa, Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos and Gov. Yahaya Bello of Kogi.
Others were Gov. Jubril Bindow of Adamawa, Gov. Kashim Shettima of Borno, Gov. Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi and Gov. Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo state
Others were Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun, Gov. Simon Lalong of Plateau, Gov. Rochas Okorocha of Imo, Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano and Niger State Governor, Sani Bello.
Gov. Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna state, Gov. Tanko Almakura of Nasarawa, Gov. Godwin Obaseki of Edo and Osun Deputy Governor, Grace Laoye-Tomori were also in attendance.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Gov. Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara, who is the current Chairman of the Governors’ Forum as well as governors of Bauchi and Yobe states couldn’t make the meeting for various reasons