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Two serving Senators of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, have tendered their resignation from the party.

The resigned senators are Mathew Urhoghide from Edo State and Ayo Akinyelure from Ondo State.

Their resignation letters were read at the plenary session on Wednesday by the Deputy President of the Senate, Ovie Omo-Agege, who presided over the session.

In his letter, Mr Urhoghide cited “negative political energy emanating from the irreconcilable differences and squabbles within the PDP at the national level and especially in my dear state, Edo State” as reason for his resignation. He further explained that the squabbles have spiked to levels that have made it impossible for a confirmed democrat like him to function and grow as envisioned in his political journey.

He, however, expressed gratitude to the party for granting him the platform to serve his country as a two-term senator and the opportunity to meet and work with his wonderful colleagues. He added that the experience he had garnered while serving helped him to build and form important and lasting friendships and imbued in him knowledge and experience that could not have been gotten anywhere else.

On the other hand, Mr Akinyelure stated in his letter that his resignation would take effect from June 11. He expressed his appreciation to the PDP for granting him the opportunity to serve Ondo Central Senatorial District and Nigeria in the Senate of the 9th Assembly. He added that his decision to resign is to enable him to settle down and look forward to other areas of human and professional endeavors where he could be of value addition to his home state, Ondo, and Nigeria at large.

The legislators did not disclose the political party they would be joining after their resignation from the PDP.

Their resignation did not come as a surprise; it was rumored that some lawmakers were planning to leave the PDP, but Urhoghide and Akinyelure are the first to make it official.

Recently, there have been growing internal disagreements and wrangling within the PDP. This internal rancor has affected the party’s cohesion and political strength, consequently denting its chances of winning future elections.

The resignation of the senators, though painful, is a warning signal for the PDP to put its house in order before it is too late.

However, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, appealed to the PDP to ensure that Urhoghide and Akinyelure’s resignation did not create any perceived or real negative effect on governance or the stability of the Senate.

It is hoped that the party’s leadership would use the senator’s resignation as a wake-up call to look inwardly, tackle the growing internal rancor and reposition PDP for national relevance in the years ahead.