Yobe ADC Denies Mass Defection to Wike-Backed PDP

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Yobe State has dismissed reports that its members and supporters recently defected in large numbers to the faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) associated with Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

The ADC state chairman, Umar Kalli Alhaji, described the report as false and politically motivated, saying no mass defection from the party to the Wike-backed PDP faction took place anywhere in the state.

Kalli made the clarification in a rejoinder issued on Thursday in response to a report attributed to Abdullahi Usman Maigida, the PDP governorship candidate linked to the faction.

The ADC chairman challenged those who claimed that the defection took place to provide evidence, arguing that such an event would ordinarily have been accompanied by photographs or videos.

He said the absence of such evidence further supported the party’s position that the reported defection was fabricated.

Kalli also disputed claims that the Wike-aligned PDP faction had established a political structure in Yobe State. According to him, the group has no recognised office, grassroots structure or meaningful political presence in the state.

He added that the faction does not have representatives in most of the elective positions expected to be contested in the area during the 2027 general elections.

The ADC chairman alleged that the report may have been designed either to create political attention for the FCT minister or to obtain financial benefits from him.

He therefore urged members of the public, ADC supporters and other political stakeholders to disregard the report, describing it as mischievous and lacking factual basis.

The controversy followed a report claiming that the Wike-aligned PDP faction had attracted new members from the All Progressives Congress (APC), ADC, National Democratic Congress (NDC) and other political parties in Nangere and Fune Local Government Areas of Yobe.

The report quoted Maigida as saying that the new entrants had strengthened the faction’s grassroots network ahead of the 2027 elections.

It also named Dr Ibrahim Aliyu among prominent politicians who were allegedly part of the defection.

However, the Yobe ADC did not specifically address the alleged defection of each of the individuals mentioned in the earlier report. Instead, the party maintained that there was no mass movement of its members to the Wike-backed PDP faction as claimed.

The development comes amid increased political realignments and disputes among opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general elections, with rival political groups seeking to expand their structures and influence across the states.