By Obike Ukoh
Defection, popularly called before now in Nigeria, carpet-crossing, has a 74-year old history. It occurred on the floor of Western House of Assembly in 1951.
On the floor of the House, elected lawmakers of the majority National Council of Nigeria and Cameroons (NCNC) defected to the Action Group (AG), overturning the majority status of NCNC.
The action consequently robbed the leader of the NCNC, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the opportunity to lead government’s business of Western Nigeria. It paved the way for Chief Obafemi Awolowo to assume that role.
Till today, the dramatis personae in that epoch making event are venerated in the old Western Region. They have a mission, and they executed it as a group.
Unlike in 1951, there is no direction in the current gale of defections by elected political office holders.
There had been defections before now, but what is happening currently is unprecedented in Nigerian history.
Analysts opine that frequent party switches can hinder democratic growth, by eroding public trust in political institutions and undermine the credibility of the political system.
They also say that defections can lead to decline in quality of governance, as elected officials prioritize their personal interests over the needs of their constituents.
They say that regrettably, these politicians usually antagonise and call unprintable names, only to go and seek solace under the same much abused and maligned political party.
Nigeria, they say, “runs a food is ready politics, the kind which University of Ibadan, Prof. Osisioma Nwolise, referred to as Amala Politics.”
Presidential Candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in the, 2023 general election, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso who commented on the issue, described it as the greatest political sin.
“This is the highest form of betrayal in a democratic setting. I don’t know of any greater political sin than when vulnerable people vote for you, rejecting deceivers and enemies of progress, and you turn around to join those same enemies after winning.
“Had the people known, they wouldn’t have voted for you,” he stated.
On his part, Senator Seriake Dickson, former Bayelsa governor, criticised the defection of politicians from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), accusing them of “running away from the mess they created.”
He was reacting to the defection of his successor , Governor Douye Diri to the APC.
Dickson described the wave of defections as “unfortunate and politically self-serving,” arguing that Nigeria’s democracy thrives on the existence of multiple parties, not a one-party system.
“I am where I have been. I am where I am. I don’t believe Nigeria should be a one-party state,” Dickson said.
“As a soldier of democracy, I’m used to the ups and downs of political life. I remain steadfast in the PDP, working with colleagues to solve the problems within the party.”
The former Governor revealed that Diri had consulted him “several times” before leaving the PDP, but said he was never convinced of the need to defect, especially as a second-term governor.
“To his credit, he consulted me several times,” Dickson said. “But I was not convinced because I saw no compelling reason for a second-term governor to defect.
“Whatever they are pursuing or whatever is pursuing them, it belittles our democracy and endangers our multi-party system.”
Dickson stressed that unnecessary party switching is not an honourable act, using Ghana as an example.
“When President Mahama lost elections, he stayed in his party. When Akufo-Addo’s party later lost, they stayed. That’s democracy.
“In Nigeria, politicians defect at the slightest opportunity. It’s political class suicide.”
He reaffirmed his loyalty to the PDP, noting that the party gave the Niger Delta people and the Ijaw nation national recognition.
“I remain standing in the PDP, the party that gave my people the opportunity to produce a Vice President, an Acting President, and a President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.
PDP the party at the receiving end of the defections, accused the APC led Federal Government of turning development into a tool of political coercion.
The party alleged that pressure was mounted on governors and elected officials to defect, adding that it is fuelled by a system that rewards only those aligned to the ruling party.
The party warned that such “weaponisation” of development poses a grave threat to Nigeria’s democracy ahead of the 2027 general elections.
PDP National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, who made the allegations, while reacting to the exit of Osun and Rivers State governors from the party, said the trend reflects a troubling political climate.
He said the leaders erroneously believe they must align with the centre to attract development to their states.
“People say they want to ‘connect to the centre’. That presupposes that the central system is not running an egalitarian system; it is running a nepotistic system where governance favours are dispensed on the basis of political partisanship,” he said.
He noted that this mentality exposes a deeper structural problem in Nigeria’s federal system, one that reduces development to a political favour, rather than a constitutional right.
“If you do not connect to the centre, you cannot take development home. That is clearly undemocratic and clearly anti-development,” he added.
He expressed optimism, that PDP will triumph at the end of the day.
“In 1998, we had no governors or senators, the quantitative voice of the people will compete with the qualitative voice of the elite,” he said.
The nascent opposition party, African Democratic Congress(ADC), also accused governors joining the APC of lacking in character, pointing out that their moves are driven by personal convenience rather than conviction.
ADC National Publicity Secretary Bolaji Abdullahi said, “We don’t have any governors because these governors that are joining the ruling party are not doing so because they are convinced about anything going on in APC.
“ They are all pandering to one vulnerability or another or looking for an easy way out.
“It takes conviction. It takes character. It takes courage. It takes belief in the nation itself for you to join the opposition party, even while you are a sitting governor, and that’s what these individuals lack.
“And it’s easy for them to go and join the ruling party. But we are not bothered about that.”
He queried, “ After the APC succeed in uniting governors under its banner, what about the people?
“Have they been able, or will they be able, to convince the people that they actually represent the best option for them?
“That is the task that they will not be able to do, because every Nigerian today understands what is going on. No amount of whitewashing can remove the reality that Nigerians are confronted with,” Abdullahi said.
The recent remarks by Nigerian-born renown author, Chimamanda Adichie, in reaction to Minister of Works and former Ebonyi State Governor, Senator David Umahi, comment that it is not yet the turn of the South-East to produce the President of the Country, clearly showed that the current wave of defections are selfishly driven.
Adichie accused Umahi of political inconsistency, recalling that in 2020 he defected from the PDP to APC on the grounds that the PDP refused to zone its presidential ticket to the South-East.
At the time, Umahi described his defection as a protest for the region. “But five years have passed, no Southeasterner has emerged as president, and now you suddenly tell us that ‘it is not yet our turn,’” she wrote.
For now, Umahi is one of the arrow heads of President Tinubu’s return come 2027.
Critical stakeholders, aware that the current trend is because of collapse of credible electoral process, have stressed the need for electoral reforms.
The leaders, under the aegis of Movement for Credible Elections (MCE), asked the National Assembly to amend the law to ensure that any elected official, who defects from the party under which they were elected automatically loses their seat.
The group said such a provision, would strengthen party discipline and protect the integrity of the ballot ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The demand formed part of a December 10, 2025 petition the coalition submitted to the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Prominent members of the group include: Political economist, Pat Utomi; former President, Nigerian Labour Congress, Ayuba Wabba; Femi Falana (SAN), and former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, among others.
In summary, the coalition wants the House of Representatives to prioritise a set of critical reforms, which include: Strengthening the Electoral Act to close loopholes and enhance accountability, mandating electronic transmission and real-time publication of polling-unit results on IREV.
“Tightening enforcement and penalties for electoral offences; strengthening INEC’s independence through autonomous funding and enhanced training for improved professional capacity.
“Ensuring all election disputes are concluded before swearing-in, ending pre-election judicial interference that disrupts the electoral process, making defections of elected officials to a different party other than the one for which they were elected a basis for loss of seat and fresh elections.”
The coalition warned that confidence in Nigeria’s elections was “at an all-time low,” blaming recurring insecurity, vote-buying, voter suppression, logistical failures and inconsistent deployment of election technology, for being responsible.
Other proposals include conclusion of all election petitions before swearing-in; and an end to pre-election judicial interventions that distort the electoral process.
“The 2027 elections present a defining moment for our democracy,” the petition stated.
“We must act now to rebuild public trust, strengthen institutions and protect the legitimacy of our electoral outcomes,” MCE emphasized.
Without contradiction and is also empirically clear, that the gale of defections is not a patriotic action, but self-serving for political survival.
Since it is hinged on the fear of losing election as a result of faulty electoral system, the needful should be done to strengthen the electoral process, that will make “ votes to count.’’
Credible election will produce credible leaders and the end result will be good governance.
