Bayelsa Governor, Cabinet Members and State Lawmakers Quit PDP
In a dramatic political shift, Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri has officially resigned from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), announcing his decision at a State Executive Council meeting in Yenagoa.
Governor Diri’s departure from the PDP was accompanied by a wholesale exodus of party members from his administration: all 19 PDP-affiliated members of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, including Speaker Abraham Ingobere, plus members of the state executive council, also relinquished their party membership.
The governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Alabrah, confirmed the mass resignation via a post on his verified social media handle.
Political watchers now anticipate that Diri and his cohorts will defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The move comes on the heels of a similar party switch by Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah, who recently left the PDP for the APC. In his defection statement, Mbah explained that PDP was no longer responsive to the voices of his constituents.
Defending his own decision, Diri maintained that his exit is not a betrayal but an act of duty to his constituents. He said:
“This is not a betrayal; it is also not abandonment. It is more about understanding that I was entrusted with the people’s mandate … and it is also a responsibility on me to carry that same mandate on a platform that will best serve the people.”
He further asserted that consultations with stakeholders led to the determination that the PDP platform could no longer optimally serve the people, hence the shift to a “stronger platform.”
As the political landscape in Bayelsa realigns, attention now turns to how the defection will reshape party dynamics and local governance in the state.