Seyi Makinde, governor of Oyo, is moving to the fourth party 20 years as he has concluded plans to join the Allied Peoples Movement, APM, ahead of the 2027 elections.
The Ibadan-born engineer cum politician who has asked his loyalists to dump the troubled Peoples Democratic Party, PDP for APM, is believed to be planning announcement in the next few days.
Makinde who first contested Oyo south senatorial election in 2007 under the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, was in Social Democratic Party, SDP before realizing his ambition in 2019 with the PDP.
Two of his loyalists— Anthony Adepoju, representing Ibarapa Central/Ibarapa North federal constituency as well as Akeem Olatunji, executive chairman of Oluyole local government have announced the exit from the party in the early hours of Thursday. Others are expected to follow suit.
It would be recalled that Bala Mohammed, Makinde’s colleague from Bauchi had recently defected to the APM.
Their exit from the PDP and defection into the APM is coming 23 days to the deadline for primaries, which is 30th May, 2026.
The new guideline of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, stipulates that all political parties are to submit their digital membership register 21 days before their primaries.
INEC also set May 30 as the deadline for primaries in line with the provisions of the new Electoral Act.
With the guideline, intending defectors have until May 9 to join and register in a new party so as to be able to contest under its platform.
