You made right decision by joining APC, Tinubu tells Bayelsa gov

.Gov Diri says defection to ruling party is to attract devt

President Bola Tinubu on Monday, officially welcomed Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, into the All Progressives Congress (APC), describing his defection as a symbol of progress and unity.

Vice President Kashim Shettima represented the President at the ceremony in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital.

Tinubu praised Diri’s leadership style and commitment to development.

“The All Progressives Congress is a party of those who believe that progress can only be guaranteed when we stand together.

“Governor Douye Diri, your story mirrors that of your people. Politics is about development, not noise or opposition.

 “We are mightily proud of you. You have made the right decision,” he said.

The President commended Diri for promoting peace and unity through infrastructural growth across the state.

“You have led with calm dignity, yet with deep commitment to development and peace. You have expanded roads to remote communities, built bridges where there were barriers, and brought light where there was darkness. This is what it means to govern with empathy,” Tinubu told the governor.

He described Diri’s defection as “a homecoming to the progressive family”.

 “You are now part of a family that thinks and acts together. We welcome you and will support you as the champion you have always been,” he added.

APC National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda, who also spoke at the event, charged Governor Diri to deliver massive votes for President Tinubu in the 2027 elections.

The party chairman described Bayelsa as a critical state for the ruling party and urged the governor to strengthen its base across the region.

The ceremony drew large crowds of APC supporters waving party flags and chanting slogans. Shettima led top APC figures, including Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State, Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta, and Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom.

Speaking after receiving the APC flag,  Gov Diri said his defection was a collective decision by the Ijaw people.

“On October 15, I announced my resignation from the People’s Democratic Party, and I ended up by saying the obvious reasons.

“Today, you will hear some of those obvious reasons. Your Excellency, the Vice President, the people you are seeing are not just Bayelsa people alone.

“They are Ijaws from Delta State in their numbers. There are Ijaws from Ondo State and there are Ijaws from Edo State in their numbers.

“This defection is not a Bayelsa defection. It is the Ijaw nation defecting to the APC,” he said.