By Gloria Ikibah
A fresh wave of defections has hit the House of Representatives following the decision of Rep. Bello El-Rufai, son of former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai, to leave the ruling All Progressives Congress for the African Democratic Congress.
The development was formally announced during Thursday’s plenary by Speaker Abbas Tajudeen, who read the letters submitted by the affected lawmakers.
According to the Speaker, Bello El-Rufai joined the ADC alongside two Kaduna lawmakers elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party — Reps. Umar Ajilo and Suleiman Yahaya Richifa.
The chamber also recorded another political switch involving Kano lawmaker Kamilu Ado, who moved from the ADC to the Nigeria Democratic Congress.
In a separate announcement, Rep. Joshua Obika, representing the AMAC/Bwari Federal Constituency in the Abuja, resigned from the APC and joined the Nigeria Democratic Congress.
The lawmakers attributed their defections to internal disputes and growing uncertainty within their former political parties, signalling fresh cracks within the country’s major political blocs ahead of future electoral contests.