- Okowa revealed he had informed Atiku about his intention to leave the PDP due to dissatisfaction with the party’s leadership
- Okowa claimed Atiku was also planning to exit the PDP, based on his communications
- The revelation comes amid the formation of a coalition to challenge President Tinubu in the 2027 elections
Former Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, has alleged that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is preparing to leave the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.
Okowa, who served as Atiku’s running mate during the 2023 presidential election under the PDP banner, recently defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Speaking during an interview on Arise News on Tuesday, April 29, Okowa revealed that he had informed Atiku of his intention to leave the PDP.
“I actually did communicate with him that we were going to have stakeholders’ meetings this week [last week] and that it was going to be a leadership meeting, the outcome of that meeting was going to determine our next path because we were no longer comfortable with the PDP,” he said.
He further claimed that Atiku himself was already making moves to exit the party.
“I also know that he is already heading out of the PDP from the communications he has passed on to me, and that Nigerians know already,” Okowa added.
The revelation comes amid growing political realignments. On 20 March 2023, Atiku, alongside Labour Party leader Peter Obi and former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, announced the formation of a coalition designed to challenge President Bola Tinubu in the next general election.
The emergence of the coalition has sparked widespread speculation about the formation of a united opposition front.
Omo-Agege announces mass defections from PDP to APC in Delta
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that the former Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, had revealed that 10 lawmakers from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Delta State House of Assembly were preparing to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Omo-Agege, who was the APC governorship candidate in the 2023 elections, made the announcement on Saturday, February 9, while welcoming Chief Itiako Ikpokpo (aka Malik), a two-term chairman of Isoko South Local Government Area, into the APC.
