The Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory, Ireti Kingibe, has officially resigned from the Labour Party (LP) and declared her defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Speaking to journalists in Abuja on Friday, Kingibe described her decision as a deliberate and strategic political move, adding that her formal induction into the ADC would be celebrated publicly.
“I’m totally and completely committed to the ADC,” she said. “But obviously, as the senator representing the FCT, don’t expect me to just take a lunch break and go collect a card. I want to do so with noise and fanfare.”
Kingibe expressed confidence in the ADC’s leadership, acknowledging that the party is still evolving. “It’s something that is evolving. So you cannot say while your child is still crawling that you are not happy with how he’s going to run. You wait. We are growing,” she explained.
Addressing concerns about the possibility of losing her Senate seat due to the defection, Kingibe argued that the existence of two clear factions within the Labour Party justifies her move under constitutional provisions.
“I ask you to please read the constitution. There are two factions — clear factions — of the Labour Party. The perfect definition that the constitution gives for somebody to decamp without penalty applies in this case,” she said.
She added that even the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) received two sets of results and candidates from the Labour Party during elections, which she believes supports her position.
“Even INEC got two sets of results and candidates, though they didn’t accept any. So if you ask me to stay in the Labour Party, which faction do you want me to stay in?” she asked.
Kingibe maintained that her defection is lawful and aligns with constitutional principles and democratic values. “If there were not two distinct factions of Labour Party, I would not presume to decamp because that is unconstitutional. But they are. And this is the definition the constitution gave for why it would be okay to decamp to anywhere I wanted to go. I just chose ADC,” she added.
ADEOLA KUNLE
