![Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. [Getty Images]](https://image.api.sportal365.com/process/smp-images-production/pulse.ng/28102024/2371978d-8a6c-4c22-9860-a4a2a352b10b?operations=autocrop(1042:580))
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A major political shift is underway as former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar prepares to exit the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), according to confirmation by his former running mate, Ifeanyi Okowa.
Speaking in a revealing interview on Arise TV on Tuesday, April 29, Okowa — the former Delta State Governor — disclosed that Atiku had signalled his intention to leave the PDP, even before Okowa and other Delta political leaders defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“I also know that he was already heading out of the PDP from the communications that he has passed on to me and that… Nigerians also know already,” Okowa said.
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This revelation came just a day after Okowa, along with the current Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, and several PDP stakeholders in the state, formally crossed over to the ruling APC.
Okowa noted that the decision followed a strategic meeting with political leaders in Delta State.
“We’re no longer comfortable with the PDP. It was a near-all decision that we should move into the APC,” Okowa said
Atiku aware of my planned exit from PDP - Okowa
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Okowa also emphasised that he had kept Atiku informed about the plan ahead of time.
“Actually, I did communicate with him that we’re going to have stakeholders meetings... and the outcome of that meeting was going to determine our next path,” he said.
The development further fuels speculation around Atiku’s political future. Although he has not officially announced his departure, the former vice president launched a new political coalition in March, aimed at challenging President Bola Tinubu’s administration, sparking rumours of another presidential bid in 2027.
Commenting on the broader implications of the defections, Okowa stressed the need for national stability, saying, “For the stability of Nigeria, it is best for us to have [President Tinubu] complete his eight-year tenure. Then the presidency can move back to the North.”
In response to the wave of defections, Atiku described such movements as “a normal part of democratic politics,” keeping his options open as Nigeria’s political landscape undergoes a realignment ahead of the next general election.