Ibrahim Abdullahi, senator representing Sokoto south district, has defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The defection comes in the wake of rumours about possible defection of Aminu Tambuwal, the state governor, from the opposition party of the ruling party.
Abdullahi’s notice of defection was contained in a letter read by Senate President Ahmad Lawan on the floor of the upper legislative chamber on Wednesday.
In his letter, Abdullahi cited “crisis” as the reason for defecting to the ruling party.
However, Philip Aduda, minority whip and senator representing the federal capital territory, protested against the defection.
Aduda said there is no crisis in the opposition party as claimed by the Sokoto senator.
Responding to the minority whip’s comment, Lawan said if Abdullahi claims that there is a crisis in his place it is because he is knowledgeable about it.
“If someone says in his place, this is the situation and the senator representing FCT would say no, it doesn’t exist, I think we should ask if it is you that know better or him that represents that constituency,” the senate president said
Meanwhile, Tambuwal on Tuesday, held a secret meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The meeting, which the governor described as a private meeting, however sparked insinuations over a possible plot by Tambuwal to dump the PDP for a second time.
Tambuwal, who is one of the contenders for the PDP presidential ticket for next year’s election, had lost out in the consensus arrangement which saw Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State and former Senate President Bukola Saraki emerge winners of the controversial selection process midwifed by the chairman of Northern Elders Forum (NEF), Prof Ango Abdullahi.
Besides Tambuwal, other PDP presidential aspirants involved in the controversial consensus arrangement are Bala Mohammed, Saraki and former managing director of FSB International Bank, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen.
The Sokoto State governor, when accosted by State House correspondents after the meeting, declined to make comments on the outcome of his meeting with the president, who is a member of the APC, saying his visit to the villa was a private matter.
Tambuwal, who is the current chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, has a history of changing political parties.