The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has described the defection of some National Assembly members from the ruling All Progressives Congress as “the removal of stones from (the party’s) rice” and sieving of “sand from [its] gari (cassava meal).”

He added that the defection to opposition parties had “exposed the faces of traitors.”

Mohammed spoke in his country home of Oro, Kwara State, on Sunday when members and supporters of the party welcomed him at the playground of Muslim Community Primary School, Oro.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the minister told the party’s supporters, in their thousands, that the defection of the lawmakers in the National Assembly had exposed the “faces of traitors” in the party’s fold.

“Today is a special day. God has answered our prayers by exposing our political traitors.

“God has removed stones from our rice and sands in our gari,” Mohammed, who addressed the rally in Yoruba language, said.

He assured that the defection would have no significant negative effect on the party; instead, he said, it would offer an opportunity for its re-positioning.

“We are here today to assure that it is a new dispensation in Kwara APC politics. We are at home today to assure you that the party will be re-organised and re-positioned.

“By exposing the enemies and traitors in our fold, God has given us the opportunities that we have been looking for to re-position.