Welcoming the new members, Mr Radda pledged inclusive leadership and directed officials at all levels to fully integrate the new members into APC activities.

Katsina State Governor, Dikko Umaru Radda on Tuesday welcomed over 40,000 card-carrying members from various opposition parties into the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state. The Governor received the mass defectors at the State Government House. Welcoming the new members, Mr Radda pledged inclusive leadership and directed officials at all levels to fully integrate the new members into APC activities.

"Your decision to join our progressive movement strengthens our resolve to build a greater Katsina state," the governor asserted. He further enjoined the new party members to join the APC-led government in accelerating the development programmes that are already changing the state for the better.

Leading the group of defectors were former Deputy Speakers of the State House of Assembly, Yakubu Idris Dan Chafa and Hassan Suleiman Rawayau. Other notable figures among the mass defectors included Isah Hamisu Dandume of the All Peoples Party (APP) and Musa Gafai, Chairman of Gafai Communication and former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) aspirant for the Federal House of Representatives, along with several former state legislators and local government chairmen.

Earlier, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Political Matters, Ya'u Umar Gwajo Gwajo, explained that the defectors represent a broad coalition from across the political spectrum.

Speaking on behalf of the defectors, former Chairman of PDP, Rabiu Gambo Bakori, cited internal conflicts within opposition parties and Governor Radda's credible electoral victory in 2023 as key factors that informed their decision to join the APC.