The senator representing Edo South and chairman of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, Neda Bernards Imasuen, has declared his intention to defect from the Labour Party to the ruling All Progressives Congress on June 12, Nigeria’s Democracy Day.
Speaking in Benin City, Mr. Imasuen said his defection was driven by the internal crisis within the Labour Party, which he claims has hindered his ability to fulfill his mandate.
“I will be leaving the Labour Party to the APC as the current disarray in the LP will not help me achieve my aim for my people,” Mr. Imasuen said.
The senator added that the move would also strategically align Edo South with the Tinubu-led federal government in hopes of fostering development in the region.
“My movement will also help align Edo South with the federal government and bring development to our people,” he said.
Mr. Imasuen’s switch to the APC comes amid rising political defections, particularly by opposition figures seeking closer ties with the center of power in Abuja.
His announcement also follows earlier investigative reports detailing his controversial past in the United States.
Recall that Mr. Imasuen was implicated in a large-scale bank fraud scheme before returning to Nigeria to enter politics.
U.S. court documents indicate Mr. Imasuen was permanently disbarred in New York after taking money from a client without providing legal services, and ignoring multiple subpoenas from the New York State court system’s disciplinary bodies.
Further investigations linked him to a sprawling mortgage fraud ring that defrauded over $25 million from at least 33 financial institutions across the U.S., including Citibank, HSBC, Wells Fargo, ABN Amro, and Lehman Brothers.
According to the FBI, Mr. Imasuen was the lawyer “who arranged the transactions underlying the substantive bank fraud charges in the indictment.”
The scheme, as detailed in a federal grand jury indictment on December 14, 2012, involved straw buyers who were paid to obtain loans under false pretenses, violating federal banking laws and defrauding numerous institutions.
Mr. Imasuen’s political career in Nigeria has remained unaffected by these revelations, and his expected formal induction into the APC marks a significant moment as he continues to wield influence in the Senate despite his controversial past.
