ABUJA – The All Progressives Congress says it is set to receive over 10,000 members of opposition parties, including the African Democratic Congress, Peoples Democratic Party and Nigeria Democratic Congress, into its fold.
According to a statement signed by Special Adviser to the APC National Chairman on Media and Information Strategy Abimbola Tooki, the decampees are members of the Maji Johnson Bello Movement, which is expected to formally join the ruling party at a ceremony scheduled to hold soon.
The development followed a courtesy visit by the executive members of the movement to the APC National Secretariat in Abuja on Tuesday as part of consultations ahead of the planned defection.
Receiving the delegation on behalf of the APC National Chairman, Prof Nentawe Yilwatda, his Personal Private Secretary, Jibrin Bancir, described the planned defection as a significant development and evidence of growing confidence in the APC and the administration of President Bola Tinubu.
Bancir said the party was particularly encouraged by the movement’s grassroots reach, organisational capacity and political network, assuring the incoming members of seamless integration into the APC structures.
He said the new members would be registered and integrated from the ward level, stressing that their political capacity would be deployed to strengthen the party.
«“Politics is local. We will ensure that everybody knows you in your local government as bona fide members of the APC. We want you to become part and parcel of the party at the ward, local government, state and national levels.”»
Earlier, the Chairman of the MJB Movement, Maji Johnson Bello, said the decision to join the APC was driven by the group’s belief that Tinubu’s economic reforms offered the best pathway to addressing Nigeria’s challenges.
Bello said the movement had carefully considered the direction of the country and resolved to support what it described as the President’s efforts to reposition the economy and lay the foundation for sustainable development.
He added that the planned defection was not motivated by political convenience, saying the movement would deploy its grassroots network to mobilise more Nigerians into the APC ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Bello said the formal defection would mark the beginning of a wider mobilisation campaign aimed at strengthening the APC’s structures across the country.