Mass defection hits Taraba as all PDP structures collapse into APC
Beginning early in the day, letters of resignation flooded party offices, council secretariats, and government buildings in Jalingo, signaling what appeared to be a coordinated defection to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.
By midday, it had become evident that the PDP, once the state’s dominant political force, had been stripped of virtually all its major stakeholders.
The first major blow, as noticed by SOCIETY WATCH came from the Taraba State House of Assembly, where all sixteen PDP lawmakers announced their resignation from the party in rapid succession.
By afternoon, chairmen of all sixteen local government councils led by state ALGON chairman, Dr. Aminu Jauro Hassan, also issued a joint statement confirming their decision to leave the PDP.
The chairmen said their move was aimed at aligning with Governor Agbu Kefas, who is expected to formally defect to the APC on Wednesday.
“Our decision is aimed at aligning fully with the governor’s political direction and strengthening support for his Moving Forward Agenda,” the statement read.
In a further blow to the PDP, the party’s state chairman, Alhaji Bawa Abubakar, and the entire state executive committee tendered their resignations.
This development was widely viewed by political analysts as the party’s total collapse in the state.
The exodus continued into the evening, as commissioners, advisers, and senior government officials, many of whom were appointed under the PDP, announced their defection to the APC.
A statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and Re-Orientation, Barrister Zainabu Usman Jalingo, confirmed that the entire State Executive Council had joined the national ruling party.
Some commissioners, who spoke with our reporter, attributed their decisions to unresolved tensions and leadership challenges within the national PDP.
One senior official, who requested anonymity, said remaining in the party “would only end up frustrating our political dreams.”
The mass defection comes just days before Governor Kefas is expected to make his formal announcement, a development that political observers described as one of the most sweeping realignments since the creation of Taraba State.
If the governor proceeds as anticipated on Wednesday, he is expected to enter the APC with a fully intact political structure, an event that could significantly reshape the state’s political dynamics.
As Taraba awaits the governor’s formal declaration, one outcome is already clear: the political map of the state has been dramatically altered, leaving the future of the PDP, once a formidable force, uncertain.
