The lawmaker representing Lokoja Kogi Federal Constituency Hon. Barr. Shaba Ibrahim said it will be suicidal for him to defect to ruling the All Progressive Congress (APC).
Speaking to newsmen at the Nigeria Union Journalist (NUJ) Press Centre in Lokoja, on Saturday, to mark his two years of stewardship, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) federal lawmaker noted that he came under attack from the public and members of his party for visiting Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State.
According to him, his visit to Governor Bello was misconstrued by many individuals in the state, especially some members of his party, adding that it has nothing with politics but the growing insecurity in his constituency.
Hon. Ibrahim said his visit to the Governor yielded a positive result as some vehicles were distributed to security agencies to fight insecurity in his constituency and not an attempt to defect to the ruling party.
When asked by a journalist that if he intends to defect to ruling All Progressive Congress, (APC) in Kogi following his romance with Governor Bello APC led government, the Federal lawmaker responded by saying” I have been confronted by this monstrous question right from the day I was inaugurated. I got calls from people I don’t know. I received an anonymous text message which read thus” Barrister Shaba, you cannot afford to lose the respect for those who look up to you for political survival.
“That anonymous text message touched me I must confess. I have been pressured by Abuja and many more to join the APC. I could come up with many excuses to join the APC because I will be in the corridor of governance both at the local and federal levels.
“With that text from that anonymous person, I concluded that it is better to be on the path of truth. Looking at it holistically, and my contract with the people, this be a total betrayal if I defect to the APC.
There won’t be any single reason known to me, for now, to embark on such a suicidal decision to defect to APC. I choose my friends and I choose them carefully. The life am leaving is out of choice and not want. I believe when you grow sight, let it reflect on your giving and not appreciation”.
He commended the People Democratic Party (PDP) for the recently concluded convention, adding that the party is set to rescue Nigeria come 2023.