PDP opens the door for ex-Vice President's return

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has opened its doors wide open for the return of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar after his resignation from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

In a resignation letter signed by Atiku on Friday, November 24, 2017, he accused President Buhari of neglecting him and condemned the APC for "instituting a regime of a draconian clampdown on all forms of democracy".

In a reaction to Atiku's exit from the ruling party, the PDP urged him to return to the party where he served as the deputy to former President Olusegun Obasanjo from 1999 to 2007, and lost the primaries election to former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2011.

In a statement signed by the PDP's spokesman, Dayo Adeyeye, the party accused the APC of taking advantage of its leadership crisis to lure Atiku away. He further said that Atiku's exit from the ruling party means that he's realised that it is not the progressive party it's always claimed to be.

His statement read, "I believe they were deceived, people like Atiku because we had challenges in our party at that point in time, they went and join the new party called the APC which we have all now see; every Nigerian has seen, is a fallacy.

"The day APC was born marked a tragedy for Nigeria. It has been a monumental disaster for Nigeria. There is nothing progressive in them. Everything about them is unprogressive. Everything about them is complete disaster.

"It is human to make mistakes because we are not infallible. We have no knowledge of what will happen in the future. Human beings can always be deceived. But in John 8: 32, the Bible says 'And you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.'

"I believe Atiku Abubakar has come to know the truth like he said in the statement that he has now known the truth, that the APC is not what they call themselves, is not a better platform. That platform is the worst platform in the history of politics in Nigeria.

"I believe that Atiku has seen the truth and the truth has now set him free and we thank God for that. Therefore, being a founding father and because we have an umbrella that is big enough to accommodate everybody, PDP is a democratic party. PDP is a free party and was conceived for all Nigerians and is free from all religious, ethnicity and geographical divisions.

"It has capacity to accommodate everybody. Our doors are open for him to come back to his home without any precondition. He is free to come back like every other Nigerian and we want to appeal to those who have not seen the truth and we are praying that they will soon see the truth , so that the truth will set them free. And as soon as they are free, let them come back."

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While expressing the willingness to welcome Atiku back into the party's fold, Adeyeye warned that he should not expect to be handed the party's presidential ticket for the 2019 elections.

"We won't give ticket to anybody just like that. We will follow all the democracy our processes," he said.