The All Progressives Congress, APC, has reacted to Atiku Abubakar’s decision to leave the party. The ruling party said Mr. Abubakar’s exit was informed by his personal political interest, a calculation the party understands.
“The former vice president found that his interests would be better served elsewhere and he decided based on that,” party’s spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, told sources by telephone Friday afternoon.
Mr. Abubakar, vice president from 1999-2007, announced his exit from the APC Friday morning, railing against what he described as the party’s shortcomings in the area of internal democracy and social co-existence.
He said the APC has failed to deliver on its promises to Nigerians who have long been desperate for improved economic interventions.
Mr. Abubakar, a founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party, joined the APC in early 2014, barely a few months after the party was established to challenge the then ruling PDP.
On Friday, he did not immediately say which party he’ll move to next, but suggestions are rife that he has concluded plans to join the PDP.
Mr. Abubakar’s move has drawn mixed reactions from Nigerians.
The APC welcomed the development, although the party lamented the loss of one of its most formidable political heavyweights.
“No party would be happy to see its leaders depart, but politics is all about interest,” Mr. Abdullahi said.
The APC said the development calls for some reflections.
“While it is true that we’ve lost some politicians, we’ve also been having incomers,” Mr. Abdullahi said. “But it would help us to look internally and address areas that require attention.”
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