Mass defection looms in National Assembly as Obasanjo intensifies moves to lure prominent and other members to Coalition for Nigeria
Sequel to former president Olusegun Obasanjo’s much-publicised statement, a report has it that most members of the two chambers of the National Assembly are seriously considering switching to the new Coalition for Nigeria (CN), a third force political group being championed by the ex-President.
Newsheadline247 understands the aggrieved members of the ruling All Progressives Congress and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party in both the Senate and House of Representatives are said to be considering Obasanjo’s platform to achieve their political goals in the 2019 general elections.
One of the aggrieved lawmakers, who spoke with Sunday Punch NG on condition of anonymity for fear of persecution, said it was becoming clear that many of them would be denied electoral tickets by their parties and the option was to consider Obasanjo’s offer.
The APC members, according to the source, include serving and former governors and members of the National Assembly.
The APC senator from the North confirmed that the ex-President had reached out to some of the lawmakers, who are now lobbying their colleagues to embrace the CN.
“It is true that he has reached out to us and I can tell you that 80 percent of National Assembly members are with him. It is very huge,” the legislator added.
When asked if the lawmakers, who are interested in the CN, would remain in their parties but shift their loyalty to the new pro-political group, or they dump their parties outright, the source said a new party was under consideration.
“Registration of a political party cannot take more than two weeks. I can tell you that out of the parties that were registered, there is one at hand – somewhere – which will likely be the focus,” the lawmaker said.
While refusing to name the party, the source confirmed that the unnamed party would the used to execute the agenda of the coalition.
The senator said mass defection from the APC and the PDP loomed, especially at the National Assembly.
He added, “I can confirm to you that there is most likely to be defections from the APC in the next one month.
“I can tell you that there are people in the APC who are not comfortable with the party; and there are those in the PDP who are not comfortable with the party also. So, most likely, these would be the forces that would form the third force.”
Reports from The Punch NG
