Trending 
The lawmaker representing Obingwa-West State Constituency in the Abia State House of Assembly, Uchenna Erondu Jnr, on Tuesday evening resigned from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to join the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Erondu Jnr., who chairs the House Committee on Public Service Matters, was officially welcomed into the APC at Nenu in the Obingwa Local Government Area of Abia State.
He was received by former Deputy Governor Chris Akomas alongside party leaders and supporters numbering over 5,000.
Explaining his decision, the former Obingwa LGA chairman said the move to the APC would position him better to attract development to Obingwa LGA, Abia South, and the state as a whole.
He pledged to continue his record of effective representation and called on residents of Obingwa, the South-East, and Nigeria to support the ruling party.
“If I could accomplish what I did while in the PDP, I assure our people that with the APC platform, we will do even more. I urge sustained collaboration to consolidate the gains made so far by President Tinubu,” he said.
Erondu Jnr also declared his full support for the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027, describing the President’s reform agenda as “bold and necessary for Nigeria’s long-term growth” and adding that “the re-election of President Tinubu in 2027 is not negotiable”.
The defection followed sustained overtures from leading APC figures, including the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Okezie Kalu; former Imo governorship candidate Uche Nwosu; and federal lawmaker Chris Nkwonta.
Kalu had met with Erondu Jnr on Saturday night, during which he formally invited the state legislator to join the APC.
In his remarks, Akomas described Erondu Jnr as “a priceless political asset and an early foundation member of the APC in Abia”, noting that he previously served as the party’s first Administrative Secretary in the state alongside Chief Nyerere Chinenye Anyim, its pioneer National Vice Chairman from Abia.
He thanked Erondu for responding to the call to return to the APC and expressed confidence that his defection would significantly strengthen the party’s structure ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Erondu Jnr defected alongside former Obingwa LGA chairman Hon. George Ubani, Hon. Chikezirim Monday Orji and more than 5,000 supporters, a development party stakeholders described as a major boost for the APC in Abia State.
Other prominent APC figures present included Chief Sam Nkire, a member of the party’s Board of Trustees; former Abia Speaker Rt. Hon. Christopher Enweremadu; Hon. Aaron Uzodike; Hon. Emmanuel Ndubuisi; Hon. Ebere Nwachukwu; and Mrs Precious Achumba.
The defection is widely seen as a significant setback for the PDP in the state. Efforts to obtain a reaction from the state PDP chairman, Elder Abraham Amah, were unsuccessful.
