Nigeria’s House of Representatives Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda, has defected to the ruling All
Progressives Congress (APC) from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a move that further weakens the main opposition party and consolidates President Bola Tinubu’s grip on the legislature.
Chinda, who represents Obio/Akpor federal constituency in Rivers State, was one of the PDP’s most prominent voices in the lower chamber, making his exit a significant blow to what remains of the opposition’s presence in the National Assembly.
The defection comes amid the broader political realignment sweeping Rivers State, following months of bitter crisis within the PDP that has seen Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his allies face intense pressure from forces loyal to his predecessor and political godfather, Nyesom Wike, now the Federal Capital Territory Minister.
The development leaves the PDP increasingly rudderless in the House of Representatives, stripped of one of its most recognised legislative figures at a time when the party is already grappling with internal divisions at the national level.
The APC, which has aggressively expanded its legislative majority in recent months through a series of defections, did not immediately issue a formal statement on the latest addition to its ranks.
The PDP has not yet responded publicly to Chinda’s exit.
