Senator OBA Dumps YPP, Defects To APC In A'Ibom...Senate President, Others on Ground for Reception

The Senate President Godswill Akpabio and 10 senators are expected to receive the 2023 governorship candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) in Akwa Ibom State, Bassey Albert, into the All Progressives Congress (APC) today, Friday, in Akwa Ibom.

A source, who disclosed this to PREMIUM TIMES, said the event will take place in the afternoon at Mr Akpabio’s hometown, Ukana, Essien Udim Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom.

“The senators are already in town, they are lodging at a hotel in Ikot Ekpene. Akpabio, yesterday, had a meeting with Oba (Mr Albert is popularly known as Oba in Akwa Ibom) and his supporters who are already defecting to the APC,” the source said.

“Akpabio is not acting on his own, it’s a directive from Tinubu that he and other senators should come over to Akwa Ibom to receive Oba,” he added.

The chairperson of the contact and mobilisation committee of Mr Albert’s governorship campaign council, Daniel Udoh, confirmed the development to PREMIUM TIMES, Friday afternoon.

Mr Udoh is also a political adviser to Mr Albert.

“Yes, it’s true,” Mr Udoh said of Mr Albert’s planned defection to the APC. He also confirmed that the event would take place in Mr Akpabio’s hometown.

Mr Albert lost the 2023 governorship election to Governor Umo Eno, who contested on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The YPP candidate also lost the legal battle to overturn Mr Eno’s victory.

Mr Albert was originally a member of the PDP, under which platform he won the Senate election and represented Akwa Ibom North-East for two terms, from 2015 to 2023. He defected to the YPP when the PDP frustrated him from getting its governorship ticket.