2027 Election: Keyamo Slams Atiku for Resigning From PDP Amid Buhari's Death, "Obsession"
- Minister Festus Keyamo has called out Atiku Abubakar, saying he is duty-bound, both as a cabinet member and a member of the inner bar, to protect Nigeria's laws and constitution
- Alhaji Atiku confirmed on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, that he had resigned from the PDP, a party he joined from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in December 2017
- In reaction, Keyamo, an APC chieftain, said Atiku is obsessed with attaining power and should not have announced his political move during a mourning period for former President Muhammadu Buhari
Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering elections, politics, and governance in Nigeria.
FCT, Abuja - Festus Keyamo, minister of aviation and aerospace development, on Wednesday, July 16, criticised Atiku Abubakar over his resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Legit.ng had reported how Atiku, a former Nigerian vice-president, resigned his membership of the PDP ahead of the 2027 election.
Source: Twitter
In a letter dated Monday. July 14, 2025, and addressed to the chairman of the PDP, Jada 1 Ward, Jada local government area (LGA) of Adamawa state, Atiku stated that his resignation is due to irreconcilable differences that have emerged within the former ruling party.
The 78-year-old noted that he found it necessary to part ways due to the current trajectory the party has taken, which, according to him, diverges from the foundational principles it stood for.
Atiku, who served as Nigeria’s vice president between 1999 and 2007, expressed gratitude to the PDP for the platform it provided him to serve and twice contest the presidency—in 2019 and 2023.
He was also a presidential aspirant on the platform of the party in 2007 before decamping to the Action Congress (AC), a forerunner of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
His exit marks another major turning point in his long and eventful political career, which has seen him criss-cross party lines in pursuit of electoral goals.
Atiku has sought Nigeria’s top job six times since 1993 under different political banners, including the Social Democratic Party (SDP), the PDP, the AC, and the APC.
The perennial presidential contender tendered his resignation in the build-up to the 2027 general election as he teams up with a coalition platform, the Alliance Democratic Congress (ADC).
Reacting to Atiku's exit from the PDP, Keyamo, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), said the fact that the resignation letter was delivered the morning after the death of former President Muhammadu Buhari was announced, "clearly demonstrates that your obsession with your perennial presidential ambition knows no sympathy or empathy."
Continuing, the minister argued that it is "both morally and legally wrong" for Atiku to continue to use the coat of arms of the federal government in his private or political communications when he stopped being a government functionary in 2007.
"Section 6 of the Flag and Coat of Arms Act, Cap. F30, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 makes this an offence."
The Delta-born politician added:
"Morally, it is also reprehensible to use a symbol suggesting that you are acting on behalf of the authority which that symbol represents. It borders on impersonation. Imagine a situation where all former government functionaries continue to use the Coat of Arms of Nigeria in their personal, political or private communications. There would certainly be confusion everywhere."
2027 election: 'Nigeria's political climate shifting'
Meanwhile, Dr. Grema Kyari, an aspirant for Borno state PDP chairman, explained that the political climate in Nigeria is shifting, characterised by a complex interplay of factors including democratic backsliding, social and economic challenges, and the rise of new political actors.
Kyari, whose political journey began in 2006, stressed that there is a new political climate in West Africa's most populous nation.
He told Legit.ng:
"What is clear is that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has missed critical opportunities to steer the country in the right direction. As things stand, it is too early to predict the outcome of the 2027 general elections. But one thing is certain: the APC is struggling with serious issues of acceptability among the Nigerian populace.
"The political climate is shifting, and Nigerians are watching. What we do between now and 2027 will determine not only the future of the PDP, but the fate of democracy in our country."
ADC coalition strengthens APC
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that APC's Keyamo said the recent migration of the opposition coalition into the ADC marks the formal dismemberment of the PDP.
Keyamo said by law, no individual can belong to multiple political parties at the same time, making the open declaration for ADC a clear abandonment of previous affiliations for the politicians involved.
Source: Legit.ng
