With APC senators now 75, ruling party snatches 16 lawmakers in two and a half years from rivals

•PDP shrinks from 36 to 26, LP from 8 to 4, APGA 2; NNPP from 2 to 1, SDP from 2 to 1 and YPP from 1 to 0

•Senator Abaribe: This is politically disastrous for Nigeria

By Henry Umoru

THE 10th National Assembly was inaugurated connected June 12, 2023.

As of the time, the spread betwixt the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, and the absorption governmental parties enactment unneurotic was not much.

Prior to the inauguration and adjacent erstwhile then-Senator-elect Godswill Akpabio, APC, Akwa Ibom North-West, yet became the President of the Senate, the ruling enactment was not adjacent to having the bulk dependable successful the Upper Chamber if votes were to beryllium conducted connected delicate nationalist issues, utilizing the physics voting system.

As of that time, the Senate had members from the APC; the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP; Labour Party, LP; the All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA; the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP, the Young Progressives Party, YPP, and the Social Democratic Party, SDP.

When the contiguous Senate came connected committee successful June 2023, the ruling APC had 59 senators portion the absorption enactment unneurotic had 50.

The breakdown past was APC 59; PDP 36; LP 8; NNPP 2; SDP 2 and YPP 1.

Some months aboriginal successful the beingness of the 10th Senate, the fig of APC and LP came down and that of PDP accrued by two, making it 38 members for the PDP.

The summation successful fig of the PDP and simplification successful fig for the ruling APC and LP was sequel to the ruling of Court of Appeal that nullified Senator Abubakar Ohere of the APC, Kogi Central successful October 2023 and Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of the PDP was sworn-in November 2, 2023 to regenerate Ohere.

Similarly, the Court of Appeal sacked Senator Darlington Nwokocha of the LP of Abia Central and Austin Akobundu of the PDP was sworn-in November 15, 2023 to regenerate Nwokocha.

But successful October 2023, the fig of APC senators accrued by 1 erstwhile the lone YPP lawmaker successful the Upper Chamber, the precocious Senator Ifeanyi Ubah, Anambra South, dumped the YPP for the APC and that led to the decease of YPP successful the Senate.

Meanwhile, arsenic of Thursday, October 16, 2025, pursuing the transverse carpeting of Senator Benson Konbowei, Bayelsa Central from the PDP to the APC, the configuration of senators successful the Senate present crossed governmental parties are APC 75 , PDP 26; LP 4; APGA 2; NNPP 1 and SDP 1, totaling 109.

Speaking with Sunday Vanguard connected what the implicit powerfulness of the APC means for the polity, erstwhile Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, APGA, Abia South, said, “It is politically disastrous for Nigeria. Dissent successful authorities is what makes it a democracy.

“My singular regret is that the descent into the abyss is being championed by idiosyncratic who stood against the hegemony of the PDP. Today astir unluckily helium is starring the complaint to crook Nigeria into Paul Biya’s Cameroun.”

The station With APC senators present 75, ruling enactment snatches 16 lawmakers successful 2 and a fractional years from rivals appeared archetypal connected Vanguard News.