The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has further consolidated its majority in the National Assembly following the defection of the Senator representing Plateau North Senatorial District, Prince Pam Mwadkon Dachungyang, from the Action Democratic Party (ADP).
The formal announcement of his cross-carpeting was made during the plenary session on Thursday by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, who read the lawmaker’s official letter of defection to the applause of the APC caucus.
In the letter addressed to the Senate President, the lawmaker cited irreconcilable internal divisions and a fragmentation of leadership within the state chapter of the ADP as the primary reasons for his exit.
He noted that the crisis had made it impossible for him to effectively discharge his legislative duties and deliver dividends of democracy to his constituents while remaining under the ADP banner.
The Senator expressed his desire to align with the federal government to attract more development to the Plateau North zone.
He pledged his unalloyed loyalty to the APC and declared his commitment to supporting the Renewed Hope agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to foster national stability and economic growth.
The defection was met with jubilant scenes on the floor of the Red Chamber as the Senate Leader and other high-ranking APC lawmakers welcomed their new colleague.
He was immediately ushered to the ruling party’s side of the aisle, shaking hands with the Senate President and other principal officers.
This development serves as a significant political shift in Plateau State politics, where the ADP had capitalized on previous intra-party disputes to clinch the senatorial seat. With this move, the APC has effectively reclaimed a strategic foothold in the state’s northern senatorial district, further shrinking the opposition’s numbers in the upper legislative chamber.
