Douye Diri, governor of Bayelsa, will officially join the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Monday, TheCable understands.
9news Nigeria through a reliable source that President Bola Tinubu, APC governors, and members of the party’s national working committee (NWC) will receive Diri into the ruling party.
Sources familiar with the backroom manoeuvring said Diri, who resigned from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on October 15, has been engaged in discreet negotiations with APC figures to finalise his defection plan.
A party source said the delay in Diri’s formal defection was to ensure the “seamless integration of the PDP bloc into the APC’s Bayelsa structure” and to “prevent internal friction” ahead of the 2027 elections.
The defection is one of the most significant political realignments in the south-south since 2023, signalling APC’s renewed push to expand its base in the oil-rich zone hitherto dominated by the PDP.
In recent months, the PDP has been hit by a wave of high-profile defections, including several lawmakers in the national assembly, weakening its influence.
The exodus has not been limited to the national assembly. This year alone, the PDP has lost at least four sitting governors — Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta), Umo Eno (Akwa Ibom), Peter Mbah (Enugu) and Diri (Bayelsa).
The gale of departures has cut the party’s governorship count to eight, amid growing speculation that Agbu Kefas, governor of Taraba, will be the next to cross over to the APC.
