Acting National Chairman of the PDP, Ambassador Umar Damagum, said Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s latest departure did not come to the party as a surprise.
He said the former VP would be back in the party as he has always done.
Atiku’s resignation, according to him, is consistent with his history of switching political affiliations.
“This is not the first time; we’re expecting him back,” he said, flanked by Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed.
Damagum said PDP remained strong and unbothered by Atiku’s resignation.
Why PDP is not losing sleep over Atiku —Abdulahi
Also speaking on Atiku’s exit from the PDP, the party’s Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Ibrahim Abdulahi, said it (exit) has no consequence for the party.
Atiku, according to him, “is a person who is given to driving and pursuing his ambition with every vehicle, and there’s nothing wrong with that in the face of the law.
“But we as a party are not deterred; we are not losing any sleep over Atiku Abubakar.”
Continuing, Abdulahi, who spoke on Arise Television, said: “When he said the other previous instances were not as justified as this present one, it leaves much to be desired about his commitment to the party. But suffice to say PDP is moving on; we are beginning to get our house together.
“If only you know the number of persons that are calling to congratulate the PDP on his exit, because there were a lot of persons who, all along, wanted to identify with the PDP but they were apprehensive of his involvement for the simple reason that as long as he remained within the party all the time, he would get the ticket, and it doesn’t matter to him if the zoning favours the north.
“A lot of persons are now calling across the strata, saying that now you people seem to be getting it right, and by the grace of God, you will cross the bridge for the first time since those of them who you know kept constituting a clog in the wheel of the progress for the party are now giving way.
“So, we bid him farewell. Let him go and try somewhere else. I only pray he will not fail in his promise by coming back after the so-called coalition hits the rocks, which is going to be the case ultimately.”
Abdulahi said PDP would not have found itself in the crisis it currently battles with if Atiku had managed the post-2022 PDP presidential primary situation carefully.
He added: “All that he is obsessed with is to contest for the presidency of Nigeria at all cost. And when a person begins to think that he is indispensable in a movement, then it leaves much to be desired about his sincerity in that mission.
“By now one would be expecting Atiku to have called it (presidential bid) off; to have raised some other successors to say three decades after he started, he’s not still aspiring for the presidency.
“It mustn’t be you; if you can’t see anybody all along to back for it, it’s very unfortunate. So, PDP is not losing any sleep over his exit.”
Abdulahi said Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike, remains a member of the PDP as he hasn’t come out to denounce his membership.
He spoke of PDP’s plan to utilise an ongoing internal process to ensure reconciliation and also deal with any member who perpetuates division within it.
He said that with the resolution of the dispute over the authentic national secretary, the party was now poised to put the past behind it and move boldly forward ahead of the 2027 general election.
“PDP is still there and we are priding ourselves with 10 performing governors who have carved a niche for their states and who have stood out in the crowd relative to what obtains in the APC-governed states.
“Our governors have done so well and it doesn’t matter if we are receiving a lot of pressure from the ruling party APC, for them to join the few elements that were cowed into joining the ruling party.
“PDP is not intimidated; we’ll truly come out triumphant in 2027.
“We came out of a storm, we suffered some problems but we are now navigating the waters safely.”
Atiku, in his resignation letter, cited irreconcilable differences for his ‘heartbreaking’ action.
He claimed that the party has diverged from “the foundational principles we stood for.”
Following his first exit from the PDP in 2007, he contested for the presidency on the platform of the Action Congress (AC).
He returned to the PDP only to dump it for the second time in 2014 to seek the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
He lost the ticket to the late President Muhammadu Buhari, and four years later found his way back to the PDP.
He has his eyes on the presidential ticket of the Africa Democratic Congress (ADC) for the 2027 election.
The same ticket is being sought by the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in 2023, Mr.Peter Obi and former Transportation Minister, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi.
Credit: thenationonlineng.net
