Few days to the upliftment of ban on the 2023 election campaigns and rally by the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC, Mass defection have continued to rock the ruling party, All Progressive Congress (APC) in Owerri North, Owerri West and Owerri Municipal of Imo State respectively.
The defectors who were seen on Wednesday gathered at a Hotel in Owerri where high profile members of the ruling party defected to Labour Party and were officially received into the party.
The APC decampees which included eight out of 11 wards councillors from Owerri Municipal, were received by Hon. Tochukwu Okere, the LP candidate for Owerri Federal Constituency; Hon. Clinton Amadi, LP candidate for Owerri Municipal State constituency; and representatives of the incumbent Imo East Senator and LP senatorial candidate, Sen. Ezenwa Onyewuchi.
The defectors said their decisions to join the third force (Labour Party), was due to what they described as unbearable and unruly treatment, lack of direction and undemocratic tendencies experienced in the former party.
Speaking, leader of the defectors, Hon. Frank Nweke (Nkweke) said they experienced a lot of woes and nightmares in their many years of sojourn in the ruling APC in the state.
He further expressed confident that Mr Peter Obi and other candidates of the Labour Party especially in Owerri federal Constituency has all the necessary economic experience and passion to revive the near state of comatose in Imo and Nigeria in general
Receiving the defectors, the Labour Party candidate for House of Representatives, Owerri Federal Constituency, Hon. Tochukwu Chinedum Okere KSC, assured the former APC members of fairness and equity in the new party.
He admonished them to be part of the movement to rescue Nigeria from consumption to production economy, adding that Labour Party has come to stay in Nigeria, particularly in the three local government areas that make up Owerri Federal Constituency
Torned membership cards of the defectors were seen littering the floor the premises.
Also, one of the defectors who spoke to the press said: “We have decided to join the Labour Party to work in unity and and make the party succeed in the forthcoming election in the the LGAs in Owerri Federal Constituency and beyond.”