BAYELSA State witnessed a major political realignment today, as Governor Douye Diri formally defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Vice President Kashim Shettima led a high-profile APC delegation to Yenagoa for the governor’s official welcome ceremony.
The event also drew Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Governors Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), Lucky Aiyedatiwa (Ondo), Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta), Hope Uzodimma (Imo), and Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom), among other party leaders.
The rally venue was filled with jubilant supporters waving party flags and chanting victory songs to celebrate Diri’s move—one that marks a significant shift in Bayelsa, a state long regarded as a PDP bastion.
Governor Diri’s defection follows his resignation from the PDP on October 15, 2025, after what he described as “extensive consultations.”
In his resignation announcement at the Bayelsa Government House, he said his decision was made “for obvious reasons,” though he did not immediately name the party he intended to join.
Diri also revealed that all local government chairmen in the state would be joining him in the switch.
The governor’s decision received the backing of 23 members of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, led by Speaker Abraham Ngobere.
Of the Assembly’s 24 members, 20 were previously PDP, with three from the APC and one from the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).
Diri’s defection adds to the list of PDP governors who have crossed to the APC this year, including Oborevwori of Delta, Eno of Akwa Ibom, and Peter Mbah of Enugu, signaling growing cracks within the opposition party ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Meanwhile, the PDP continues to battle deepening internal divisions.
Over the weekend, National Chairman Umar Damagum suspended key party officials, including National Secretary Samuel Anyanwu and National Organising Secretary Umar Bature.
In retaliation, Anyanwu’s faction announced Damagum’s suspension, further splitting the leadership.
By today, the crisis had escalated, with Anyanwu’s camp, led by acting National Chairman Abdulrahman Mohammed, resuming at the party’s national secretariat while Damagum and his loyalists stayed away—underscoring the turbulence rocking the PDP as it loses yet another key political figure.