2027: Bode George downplays defection of Okowa, Oborevwori to APC

….says it poses no rest threat to PDP

A former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Bode George, has said defections are part and parcel of Nigeria’s political terrain and do not signify the collapse of the PDP, downplaying the recent defection of Delta State politicians to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

He insisted that it poses no real threat to the opposition party ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Speaking during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Friday, George described the defections as a familiar political episode that holds little long-term consequence for the PDP.

His remarks come in the wake of the defection of Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, his deputy, Monday Onyeme, and former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, along with several commissioners and political stakeholders in the state, to the APC on Wednesday.

Asked what the mass movement of PDP members in Delta—reportedly including former Governor James Ibori and other political heavyweights—says about the party’s current state, George dismissed any concerns.

“Nothing. Nothing. The fact that these guys moved en masse… the people of Delta are waiting. Because what impact has the APC, as a government, given to the people? There is anger in the land. What do you think they are going to do there, if not for personal embellishment? The people of Delta are naturally PDP members. They know the kind of positive impact they enjoyed under the PDP national government. So, if you now decide to go, we wish you the best of luck. We’ve seen it before—those who trooped out eventually came back, because they’re heading into an organisation that is so personally owned.”

According to him, such defections are part and parcel of Nigeria’s political terrain and do not signify the collapse of the PDP.

“This is absolute politics. You’ll wait and see that the people of Delta will return. The will of the people is what matters in politics,” he said.

Responding to the suggestion that the latest wave of defections—including endorsements of President Bola Tinubu by PDP governors—could mark a breaking point for the party, George reiterated that the development is “merely transitional. It’s an experience. We’ve gone through this before,” he said. “It is not a threat. Just because something happens doesn’t mean it is final. Politics is not rigid; it’s dynamic.”