Bayelsa state governor, Douye Diri, is reportedly set to join the ruling APC, with the date and other details concerning the official defection emerge
Last month, the governor announced his resignation from the PDP, and he would be the fourth governor to dump the opposition for the ruling APC in 2025
Sources familiar with the development disclosed that Diri will be received into the party by President Bola Tinubu, APC governors and members of the NWC
Douye Diri, the governor of Bayelsa state, is reportedly set to join the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), on Monday, November 5. He will be the fourth governor of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who dumped the party for the APC in 2025.
The Cable reported that sources privy to the development disclosed that the Bayelsa governor has been in contact with APC figures, having discreet negotiations to perfect his defection into the ruling party.
According to a party source, the delay in the formal defection of the governor was to ensure that his integration of the PDP bloc into the APC in Bayelsa structure was seamless and to “prevent internal friction” as preparation for the 2027 elections.
Governor Diri’s defection to the APC is one of the prominent political realignments in the south-south zone since the emergence of President Tinubu in 2023. It signalled the renewed push of the APC to expand its coast in the oil-rich zone, which was earlier dominated by the PDP.
Diri’s earlier resignation from the PDP was met with strong backing from the Bayelsa State House of Assembly. Twenty-three members, led by the Speaker, publicly endorsed the governor’s decision, signalling a potential shift in the state’s political alignment. While Diri announced his resignation from the PDP, he did not disclose the political party he intends to join. The move has sparked speculation across the region, especially given its timing.
The Bayelsa governor’s exit came just 24 hours after his Enugu State counterpart, Peter Mbah, announced his defection from the PDP to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). The back-to-back resignations have raised questions about the future of the PDP in key southern states. “I have decided in the interest of Bayelsa and its people,” Diri stated, without elaborating on his next political destination. He is a second-term governor who has been serving as governor since February 2020.
