A heated debate erupted in the Senate on Thursday after Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, threatened to declare the seat of Abia South Senator, Enyinnaya Abaribe, vacant following his defection from the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) to the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

The development followed the official defection of eight senators from minority parties to the ADC and one to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) during plenary, triggering a constitutional debate over the application of Section 68 (1)(b) and (g) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

Those who defected to the ADC are Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto South), Binos Yaroe (Adamawa South), Victor Umeh (Anambra Central), Tony Nwoye (Anambra North), Lawal Adamu Usman (Kaduna Central), Mohammed Onawo (Nasarawa South), Austin Akobundu (Abia Central), Ireti Kingibe (FCT) and Abaribe. Sen. Seriake Dickson’s letter of defection to the NDC was also read.

While most of the defectors cited internal divisions in their former parties — the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Labour Party — to justify their action, Abaribe’s letter did not indicate any crisis within APGA, causing a debate on its legality.

Apparently seizing on that omission, the Senate leadership raised questions over the legality of the Abia South senator’s defection and whether the constitutional provision requiring lawmakers to vacate their seats should be invoked against him.

Acting on the directive of the Senate President, Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, rose under Order 20 of the Senate Standing Rules to challenge Abaribe’s defection. Jibrin told the chamber that while he had reviewed the letters of defection read by Akpabio, Abaribe’s case stood out because APGA was not known to be facing any division or crisis at the national level.

“Mr President, as directed by you, I have gone through the letters forwarded to you and read by you on the defections of the senators into the ADC,” he said.

“I strongly observed that one of the parties — APGA — from which Senator Abaribe defected is not engulfed by any crisis or division, particularly at the national level.

“Abaribe’s defection, as clearly stated in Section 68(1)(b) and (g) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, is against the provisions of the law and warrants you to do the needful as far as the Abia South senatorial seat is concerned.”

Jibrin noted that the Constitution provides that a member of the National Assembly shall vacate his seat if he defects from the political party that sponsored his election, except where such defection is caused by a division in the party or a merger involving the party.

Following the observation, Akpabio invited Abaribe to respond to the issues raised against his defection.

In his defence, Abaribe admitted that APGA was not divided but explained that the party had expelled him since September 2025.

According to him, his expulsion meant he no longer belonged to the party that sponsored his election, leaving him without a political platform until his decision to align with the ADC.

“I was sacked from APGA since September 2025. Since one must belong to a political party to be in the Senate, I had to join another platform,” he said.

However, the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, argued that Abaribe’s explanation could further complicate the matter. He maintained that if the senator was truly expelled from APGA as he claimed, that circumstance could itself trigger the constitutional provision requiring him to vacate his seat under Section 68(1)(b).

Apparently weighing the arguments, Akpabio ruled that the Senate would study the constitutional implications of the matter before taking a final decision.

He subsequently gave Abaribe one week to either withdraw his letter of defection or present more convincing reasons to justify his action.

Meanwhile, Senator Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa West) also formally notified the Senate of his defection from the PDP to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), a development that was conveyed in a letter read by the Senate President.

With the latest realignments, the ADC has emerged as the leading opposition party in the Senate with nine senators, while the PDP’s numbers have dwindled to seven.

The Senate composition now stands at 87 senators for the All Progressives Congress (APC), nine for the ADC, seven for the PDP, one each for APGA, the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and the NDC.

Three senatorial seats — Nasarawa North, Enugu North and Rivers South East — remain vacant following the deaths of the lawmakers who previously occupied them. (The Sun)