Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has resigned his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
In a letter dated July 14 and addressed to the chairman of the PDP in his Jada 1 Ward of Jada Local Government Area of Adamawa State, Atiku, who is a founding father of the PDP, said his resignation was with immediate effect. citing a departure from the party’s founding principles as the reason for his quitting the party.
Part of his letter reads: “I find it necessary to part ways due to the current trajectory the Party has taken, which I believe diverges from the foundational principles we stood for,” he wrote. “It is with a heavy heart that I resign, recognizing the irreconcilable differences that have emerged.”
Atiku, who served as Nigeria’s vice president between 1999 and 2007, expressed gratitude to the PDP for the platform it provided him to serve and twice contest the presidency—in 2019 and 2023.
His exit marks yet another significant turning point in the march towards the 2027 presidential election. Atiku has sought Nigeria’s top job six times since 1993 under different political banners, including the Social Democratic Party (SDP), the PDP, the AC, and the APC.
Although he formally returned to the PDP ahead of the 2019 elections, Atiku had, in recent months, become visibly frustrated with the party’s internal disagreements and its failure to reposition as a credible opposition following the 2023 defeat to the ruling APC.
Party insiders say he had grown disillusioned with the leadership’s handling of post-election reconciliation efforts and zoning disputes.
In 2024, Atiku Abubakar, who is one of Nigeria’s most prominent political leaders who is known for his deep political networks and long reach, began consultations with several opposition figures across party lines – culminating in his spearheading a new opposition coalition, the National Opposition coalition Group (NOCG), made up of top political leaders from across many political parties, groups, and associations across the country, who are pushing for sweeping electoral reforms and internal democracy within the political parties of the country. Their consultations led to the adoption of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as the coalition’s political party.
Although Atiku is yet to officially join the African Democratic Congress (ADC), the former vice president who is visibly the de facto leader of the coalition, is likely to now formerly join the ADC following his resignation from the PDP.
Although the PDP is yet to issue an official response to Atiku’s departure, however, senior party officials say the development is a blow to ongoing reconciliation efforts and could trigger further defections ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Meanwhile, Rauf Aregbesola, the Interim National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has clarified his situation with the APC, explaining that rather than voluntarily quitting the party, he was unjustly pushed out of it.
He made the statement while Speaking during a rally in Osogbo on Sunday to welcome him back to the State following his recent appointment as the national secretary of the ADC. Aregbesola said his expulsion was politically motivated and ungratifying.
He said, “The week we created the Omoluabi group, we were dragged to court and warned not to use the name of the party I helped build with my sweat. Eventually, we were expelled. I never left APC, the party left me.”
The former governor of Osun said his appointment as ADC national scribe is a clear indication that his political worth is still widely appreciated, adding that “those who know my value gave me this new position. They’ve started shouting, but it doesn’t concern us. They haven’t seen anything yet.”
Aregbesola noted that his focus now is the 2026 Osun governorship election, for which serious groundwork has already begun.
He urged supporters not to be distracted by the internal crisis rocking other political parties but to focus on the ADC’s mission of winning Osun. “This is our time in Osun. Let no one intimidate you. Let them continue their drama. Our task is to ensure that the ADC spreads across the entire state. Before the election, the people must know that those currently in power have lost their relevance.” Highlighting his legacy when in office, Aregbesola said he remains proud of his record, saying, “When we were in government, we built schools, constructed roads, and had the school feeding program that benefitted our children.”
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