Seventeen members of the Rivers State House of Assembly, including Speaker Martin Amaewhule, have defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Friday. They attributed their decision to internal conflicts within the PDP.
This development follows a previous mass defection in December 2023, which was later denied and ultimately ruled invalid by the Supreme Court. Ten lawmakers remain with the PDP, appointing Sylvanus Nwankwo as their Minority Leader.