Chinda Resigns From House Of Reps Minority Leader Position As 13 Lawmakers Switch Parties

The Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, on Tuesday, formally resigned from his position and dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for All Progressives Congress (APC).

Speaker of the House, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, announced Chinda’s resignation and defection to another party during plenary as lawmakers resumed legislative activities after a four-week recess.

Chinda had emerged the Rivers State governorship candidate of the APC for the 2027 general election.

The lawmaker, who represents Obio/Akpor federal constituency of Rivers State in the House, thanked members of the opposition for the opportunity to serve them in the capacity of minority leader since 2023.

A new minority leader has not been announced while the deputy minority whip, Hon. George Ozodinobi (NDC, Anambra) is the only one left in the minority leadership.

Recall that the deputy minority leader, Hon. Aliyu Sani Madaki (Kano) had earlier resigned from NNPP to APC while minority whip, Hon. Ali Isa, also left PDP for APC.

Meanwhile, 13 members of the House resigned from their political parties to new ones during the resumed plenary.

They included Hons. Alex Egbona (Cross River) who defected from APC to PDP, Esosa Iyawe (Edo) who joined Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) after losing the party primary for the House of Representatives seat on the platform of the APC and Jonathan Gaza Gbewfi who left the Social Democratic Party (SDP) for the Labour Party (LP).

Others were Sani Lawal (Katsina) who resigned his membership of the APC but did not announce his next political move while Shehu Dalhat Tafoki (Katsina) left APC to join the PDP.

On the other hand, PDP lawmakers – Hons Adebayo Adepoju (Oyo), Stanley Olajide (Oyo), Ojo Sunday Makanjuola (Oyo), Najeem Oyedeji (Oyo), Folajimi Oyekunle (Oyo), Abbas Adigun (Oyo) and Auwalu Gwalabe (Bauchi) joined the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) while Benedict Etenabene left the LP for the PDP.

The lawmakers in their separate resignation letters read by Speaker Abbas, who presided over plenary, cited irreconciliable differences, crisis in the party and undemocratic tendencies as their reasons for changing political parties.

For instance, Hon. Egbona, in his letter, said he was leaving the APC because the party which he claimed to have helped built in Cross River State, had been fragmented and he can no longer participate in the activities of the party.

For his part, Iyawe said he was leaving the APC athe irreconcilable difference in Edo State chapter of the APC and the refusal of the leadership of the party to address his concerns.

Those who dumped the PDP for the APM claimed they were leaving due to the prevailing leadership crisis, legal tussle and division within the PDP, while Etanebene Benedict said he left LP to PDP due to the dissolution of the Delta State elected party executives by the national leadership of the party.