The recent defection of Abba Atiku Abubakar, son of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, to the All Progressives Congress (APC) has stirred Nigeria’s political discourse, though key figures downplay its significance. Announcing his move, Abba Atiku stated, “I am here today to formally announce my exit from my former party… and my decision to join the APC.” His father, a 2023 presidential candidate now linked to the African Democratic Congress (ADC), responded on social media, saying, “The decision of my son… is entirely personal… As a democrat, I do not coerce my own children.”
ADC Director-General Comrade Aliyu Haidar dismissed the event, telling DAILY POST, “If not for the media attention, nobody would even know he had left,” while political analyst Professor Kamiku Sani Fagge added, “Abba Atiku’s defection to the APC will not have any serious impact.” Attention now turns to whether the shift will influence the landscape for the 2027 general elections.