Diri joins APC, says PDP is dead

Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri has officially defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), describing his former party as a “sinking ship” and declaring the move a strategic realignment for the Ijaw nation.

The high-profile defection ceremony took place on Monday at the Samson Siasia Sports Stadium in Yenagoa, where Vice President Kashim Shettima led a delegation of top APC leaders to welcome Diri into the party. Among those present were Senate President Godswill Akpabio and governors Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), Lucky Aiyedatiwa (Ondo), Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta), Hope Uzodimma (Imo), and Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom).

Diri’s switch to the APC makes him the fourth PDP governor to cross over this year, following similar moves by Oborevwori, Eno, and Enugu’s Peter Mbah.

Speaking at the event, Governor Diri said his decision was driven by the need to protect Bayelsa from the decline of the opposition party.

“We tried all we could to save the PDP, but to no avail. Undertakers were very busy burying the party,” he said. “After seeing that the undertakers wanted to bury the PDP, I never wanted my state to be buried alongside it.”

He described the defection as more than a personal political move, calling it a broader “Ijaw realignment” and citing long-standing regional demands such as the Lagos–Calabar coastal road, which he said President Bola Tinubu has now addressed.

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“Today, President Tinubu has acted on that demand. He has shown that he loves the Ijaw and Bayelsa people. If we have a president who understands our needs, I have no reason to remain on a sinking ship,” Diri stated.

Diri revealed that his South-South colleagues had urged him to join the APC, noting that he had become the last PDP governor in the region.

“We were five in number; we lost one, then two. I was the last man standing,” he said. “Anytime we met, they would tell me, ‘Your Excellency, come over and let’s rebuild the South-South Governors’ Forum. Bayelsa cannot remain the odd state.’”

Vice President Shettima praised Diri’s move as a “homecoming,” commending him for choosing development over partisanship.

“Governor Diri has chosen the harder right over the easier wrong,” Shettima said. “Bayelsa has chosen the light of integration over the shadows of isolation.”

APC National Chairman Prof. Nentawe Yiltwada described the defection as “a U-turn in the right direction,” urging Diri to lead the party to victory in 2027.

“The fishermen, the farmers, the traders, and the workers have spoken with one voice. Bayelsa has said, ‘We are now APC,’” Yiltwada declared.

Diri was formally decorated with the APC flag and muffler, symbolizing his new role as the party’s leader in Bayelsa State. He pledged to prioritize development and unity.

“This is not about me,” he said. “It is about the politics of development, about ensuring that our people are not left behind. We are now part of a family that values inclusion, progress, and unity.”

The defection marks a significant shift in Bayelsa’s political landscape and sets the stage for a reconfigured South-South bloc ahead of the 2027 general elections.