Atiku’s Political Desperation Responsible for PDP’s Collapse, Says APC
ABUJA/Nigeria: The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, of fueling the disintegration of his party through desperation and unfounded allegations.
In a statement issued by the APC’s National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, on Tuesday, the party dismissed Atiku’s claims that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was paying opposition leaders ₦50 million each to weaken their parties, describing the allegation as “bogus and laughable.”
The APC’s response follows Atiku’s remarks at the National Conference on Strengthening Democracy in Nigeria, held in Abuja on Monday, where he warned that judicial intervention in electoral matters was endangering democracy. The ruling party countered that Atiku, who has a long history of election-related litigation, should be the last person to question the role of the judiciary in resolving electoral disputes.
The statement also accused Atiku of hypocrisy, recalling that during his tenure as Vice President, the PDP orchestrated some of the most controversial elections in Nigeria’s history, with former President Olusegun Obasanjo infamously declaring elections a “do or die affair.” The APC maintained that democracy in Nigeria is stronger today than it was under PDP rule, with elections becoming freer and more credible.
Dismissing Atiku’s allegations as a desperate attempt to remain politically relevant ahead of the 2027 elections, the APC urged him to focus on rebuilding his party rather than engaging in “petty politicking and alarmist rhetoric.” The statement also rebuffed suggestions from Atiku, Labour Party’s Peter Obi, and former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai that the APC was interfering in the affairs of opposition parties.
“Nigerians are too discerning to be distracted by the false alarms and baseless accusations of politicians who have failed to manage their own parties yet claim they can govern Africa’s most populous country,” the statement added.
