Atiku Joins ADC Officially Monday

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar will officially defect to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) tomorrow, according to sources within his camp and the party.

This confirmation follows the recent unveiling of the party National Secretariate, an edifice donated by Atiku to the party.

This move marks the latest chapter in Atiku’s long and peripatetic political career, which has seen him align with every major party since the return to democracy in 1999.

His political journey since 1999, began within the then dominant Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), where he served as Vice President to President Olusegun Obasanjo from 1999 to 2007.

After failing to secure the PDP presidential ticket in 2007, Atiku’s career became defined by strategic defections. He left for the Action Congress (AC) to run for president in 2007, returned to the PDP ahead of the 2011 election, and then made a high-profile jump to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2014. He contested the APC primary in 2015, lost to Muhammadu Buhari, and subsequently returned to the PDP in 2017. He became the PDP’s presidential flagbearer in 2019 and again in 2023, losing both elections to the APC.

Atiku left the PDP early this year with other aggrieved members of the ruling All Progressive CongrSecretary to form a coalition under the umbrella of the ADC, a move that saw the
coalition installed former Senate President David Mark as Interim National Chairman and ex-Minister Rauf Aregbesola as National Secretary.

His decision to join the ADC is being interpreted by analysts as a direct response to the protracted and deepening crisis within the PDP. The party has been riddled with internal wrangling, particularly between Atiku’s camp and that of the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, who recently described the new ADC leaders as failed and expired politicians.

This environment has become increasingly untenable for the former Vice President’s political ambitions.

The ADC, which has a growing grassroots presence but lacks a nationally outlook for Atiku’s stature, offers a potential new vehicle. For the party, his entry provides immediate national visibility and a proven, though often contested, electoral structure.

The coalition has also garnered support from Labour Party’s Peter Obi, who stated that no one group can change Nigeria alone, though his involvement has caused internal conflict within his own party.