Abubakar Atiku Abubakar, son of former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), pledging to support the re-election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027.
The defection was formally announced on Thursday at the National Assembly, where Abubakar, popularly known as Abba, was received by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin (APC, Kano North), alongside APC leaders from the North-East geopolitical zone.
Speaking at the event, Abba announced his resignation from the PDP and declared his full alignment with the APC, describing the decision as both personal and historic. He also directed all coordinators and members of his political structure, the Haske Atiku Organisation founded in 2022, to immediately join the APC and support President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
“My name is Abubakar Atiku Abubakar, but everyone calls me Abba. I am here today to formally announce my exit from my former party, where we worked in 2023, and my decision to join the APC,” he said.
He attributed his decision to what he described as the leadership style of Senator Barau Jibrin and the performance of the Tinubu administration.
“With this development, I will work with Senator Barau to actualise the second-term bid of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027. To this effect, I am directing all coordinators of my association to join the APC and work for President Tinubu,” he added.
Welcoming him into the party, the APC National Vice Chairman (North-East), Comrade Mustapha Salihu, described the defection as symbolic and far-reaching, noting that it reflected “politics without borders.”
