The minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, says the Rivers state lawmakers who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) made the move without notifying him.
On Friday, 17 members of the Rivers assembly — among them the speaker, Martin Amaewhule — left the PDP for the APC.
Their defection came two days after the 32-member assembly passed a vote of confidence in President Bola Tinubu and encouraged him to run for a second term.
During an inspection of an ongoing bridge project in Abuja on Friday, Wike said the legislators had the liberty to choose any political party they preferred. He described the development as regrettable and linked it to the internal crisis within the PDP. He added that he would continue collaborating with the lawmakers who remain in the party.
According to him, “It is unfortunate. I have always said that everybody has the right to make a choice. The party is fully factionalised. And the constitution requires that when a party is factionalised, they are allowed to leave the party.”
He noted that “They never told me [before they quit PDP], but they have a right,” and explained that only part of the assembly left, saying the remaining members would continue to work with him.
Wike, who was recently suspended from the PDP by the Taminu Turaki-led faction, urged the party to resolve its leadership dispute to avoid further damage.
He said he had advised the party to “put your house in order,” stressing that a failure to do so would harm the organisation and weaken its role as an effective opposition.
Wike added that while those who defected were free to do so, he would maintain cooperation with those who stayed.
Tinubu had declared emergency rule in Rivers on March 18 due to prolonged political unrest in the state, suspending Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and all members of the assembly for six months. The emergency rule was lifted on September 17, 2025.
The defecting lawmakers are political allies of Wike.