Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
A former governorship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ondo State, Bosun Arebuwa, has defected to the All Progressives Congress alongside thousands of his supporters, in a move that strengthens the ruling party’s grassroots machinery as the 2027 general elections approach.
Arebuwa, who contested the PDP governorship ticket ahead of the 2024 Ondo State governorship election, led the defectors to the APC on Friday at the International Culture and Event Centre in Akure, the state capital. The group, according to Arebuwa, comprised supporters drawn from more than 3,000 political units and 203 wards across the state’s 18 local government areas. “We have left the PDP, we want to join hands with others to support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a second term in office,” he said. “Mr President has done well. We shall use our resources to support him. That is why we joined the winning party.”
Arebuwa said his decision was driven by what he described as the performance of the Tinubu administration and his conviction that the President deserved a second term to consolidate his reforms. “We are leaving the PDP with all our supporters from over 3,000 units and 203 wards across the 18 local government areas of the state,” he said. “We are ready to work for the APC in Ondo State to ensure President Bola Tinubu and all our candidates win the election in 2027.” He said his first line of action would be to deploy his experience and capacity to mobilise support for the President, describing the 2027 presidential election as his cardinal objective. “He has done creditably well. We have not had a good President like this before, so that is why we will use all we have to support him.”
Receiving the defectors on behalf of the APC leadership in Ondo State, Chief Olusola Oke, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, urged them to return to their wards and local government areas to work for the party. Oke described Arebuwa as a politician whose influence would strengthen the APC in the state. “I welcome all of you to the ruling All Progressives Congress. You will never regret joining the APC,” he said. “I want to implore you to work for the party at your various wards and local governments.” He specifically welcomed Arebuwa, saying his defection would add value to the party’s activities in the state.
The defection is the latest in a series of high-profile political realignments in Ondo State that have weakened the opposition and consolidated the APC’s dominance ahead of the 2027 elections. In May 2026, former Governor Olusegun Mimiko formally joined the APC after resigning from the PDP, citing the Tinubu administration’s reforms across key sectors. Mimiko was received at the APC secretariat in Ondo City by the state chairman, Kolawole Babatunde, alongside thousands of his supporters. The state party leadership described his entry as a major boost that would strengthen its structure, unity and grassroots appeal.
Earlier in May, another former PDP governorship aspirant, Yekini Olanipekun, defected to the APC in his Arigidi/Iye Ward in Akoko North-West Local Government Area. Olanipekun, a former lawmaker and commissioner, said the PDP’s umbrella had been torn into shreds by the factions loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and the factional national chairman, Taminu Turaki. He also cited the developmental projects embarked upon by the Tinubu administration in Ondo State, including the Akure–Ado Ekiti road, the dualisation of Akure–Ore and the Ilesa–Owo–Benin road, as well as the Nigeria Education Loan Fund, as reasons for his decision. In September, another PDP chieftain, Fisayo Ajisafe, also defected to the APC, citing the President’s development agenda and what he described as the lingering crisis within the PDP that had constrained his ability to serve his constituents.
Mass defections from the PDP to the APC have become a consistent theme in Ondo politics. In February 2026, more than 500 PDP members in Irele Local Government Area defected to the ruling party, including a former council chairman, Dele Olatunji, and members of the party’s executive in the council area. Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Legislative and Party Matters, Babatunde Kolawole, welcomed the defectors and urged them to work towards the re-election of President Tinubu in 2027. In a separate development in February, more than 300 PDP members in the state also defected to the APC.
The wave of defections has prompted the state’s political leadership to address concerns about internal discipline. In September 2026, Governor Aiyedatiwa declared zero tolerance for anti-party activities within the APC, dismissing allegations that he was sponsoring defections from the party as falsehoods spread by “naysayers, blackmailers and slanderers.” He urged the 18 local government and 203 ward chairmen of the APC to mobilise the grassroots and deliver victory for the party in the forthcoming elections, stressing that elections are won at the polling units. The state APC chairman, Babatunde Kolawole, called for total loyalty to the governor as the party’s leader and warned that anti-party activities would not be tolerated, saying the party had gathered intelligence on alleged acts of disloyalty and that those found culpable would face consequences at the appropriate time.
The defection of Arebuwa and his supporters represents a significant organisational gain for the APC in Ondo State. The 2027 general elections are scheduled for January 16, with the presidential and National Assembly elections holding on that date, followed by the governorship and state assembly elections on February 6. President Tinubu is seeking a second term on the APC platform, while former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress and Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress are among the major challengers. Ondo State, as a key South-West state, will be an important battleground, and the APC’s ability to consolidate its grassroots support through defections such as Arebuwa’s could prove decisive in delivering the state for the President.
For the PDP in Ondo State, the defections represent a deepening crisis. The party has lost a former governor, multiple former governorship aspirants, council executives and thousands of grassroots members to the ruling party within a single political cycle. The exodus has raised questions about the PDP’s organisational capacity and its ability to mount a credible challenge in the 2027 elections. The party has not issued a formal response to Arebuwa’s defection, but the pattern of departures suggests that the internal divisions that have plagued the party at the national level are having a direct impact on its fortunes in Ondo State.
For Arebuwa, the defection marks a new chapter in a political career that has included a governorship bid on the PDP platform. His decision to lead his supporters into the APC is a calculated bet that the ruling party will retain power at the federal level and that his contribution to the President’s re-election will be rewarded. Whether that bet pays off will be determined at the polls, but for now, the APC in Ondo State has gained a substantial grassroots network and a new advocate for the President’s re-election bid.
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