APC, NNPP, YPP knock PDP’S claim of 37,874 defectors in Akwa Ibom

OPPOSITION political parties in Akwa Ibom State have disputed the claim by the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) that they have collapsed their structures for the ruling party in the state, following the defection of their members to the party.

They said the humongous figures of 37,874 defectors given by the PDP were not only outlandish and misleading but also intended to score cheap political points.

PDP at an event, penultimate week, at the Ibom Hall Grounds, Uyo, had claimed that opposition political parties in the state had all joined its fold.

Reacting, at the weekend, the All Progressives Congress ( APC), Young Progressives Party ( YPP), New Nigeria Peoples Party ( NNPP), among others, said the figure presented by the PDP was outrageous.

State Chairman of YPP, Wisdom Udoka, said the party was still intact in Akwa Ibom against the claim by the PDP that members of the party had all defected.

“Such a thing did not happen because about three canopies were at the Ibom Hall Grounds, so YPP in Akwa Ibom is i ntact. I am the state chairman; my secretar y is there, even with the spokesperson of the party. My executive is intact. So, what the PDP is claiming is out - right falsehood.

“People went to collect money. Things are too tough. Most of the defectors, who claim to be members of YPP, are not our members,” Udoka said.

Similarly, the APC said its members were still intact, and denied that hundreds of its members have moved to the PDP.

The state publicity secretary, Oto- Abasi Udo, said: “The PDP is shopping for members by all means; hence, it is inflating figures of those who have defected to its fold.”

At another ceremony, PDP had claimed 43,000 YPP members defected to its ranks.