Members of the Peoples Democratic Party across all 18 local government areas of Ondo State on Tuesday defected to the All Progressives Congress.
Most of the defectors, drawn largely from the state chapter of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, said they were leaving the PDP because they were dissatisfied with the party and were ready to work for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027.
Receiving them at the APC secretariat in Akure, the party’s state chairman, Ade Adetimehin, welcomed the new members and urged them to return to their wards to begin mobilising support for the President. He stated that the APC faced no real opposition in Ondo State and that Tinubu’s performance was attracting more supporters.
Adetimehin said the President’s Renewed Hope programmes were benefiting the state, with new appointments and ongoing road construction projects. He encouraged the defectors to work hard for a landslide victory in 2027.
The leader of the defectors under the Asiwaju Transport Movement, Ojo Adewole, said their decision was influenced by the performance of President Tinubu, particularly in road rehabilitation and construction. He said over 1,000 NURTW members from the 18 LGAs joined the APC, inspired by the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, whom he described as a true leader.
Adewole highlighted ongoing projects such as the dualisation of the Benin–Ilesa Expressway, the expansion of the Ore–Ondo–Akure road, the Akure–Ado Ekiti Expressway, and the coastal highway as key reasons for their defection.
He said the continuation of road projects started under former President Muhammadu Buhari showed consistency in governance and motivated their support for Tinubu’s second-term bid.
The state had earlier seen its only PDP National Assembly member, Festus Akingbaso, and the remaining PDP members in the state House of Assembly defect to the APC, leaving Ondo as effectively a one-party state.
