Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has formally registered as a member of the African Democratic Party (ADC), strengthening the opposition coalition just 17 months before the 2027 general elections.
The 78-year-old confirmed his move in a brief post on X, sharing photos of himself holding the ADC membership card with the caption: “It’s official.” His defection follows his July 16 resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which he said had drifted from its founding ideals.
Although Atiku championed the ADC’s adoption as the joint opposition platform last July, he and other key figures, including Peter Obi and Babachir Lawal had delayed formal registration. Their absence at the unveiling of the ADC National Secretariat in Wuse, Abuja, had triggered speculation about the coalition’s cohesion.
The coalition adopted the ADC on July 2, 2025, declaring it the vehicle to challenge President Bola Tinubu and “rescue and rebuild” the nation’s democratic institutions. ADC Chairman and former Senate President David Mark said opposition forces were united by a single mission: “Rescue Nigeria. Rebuild Nigeria. Return power to the people.”
Mark accused the APC-led Federal Government of capturing democratic institutions and steering the country into a “creeping descent into total civilian dictatorship,” arguing that governance had been abandoned for politics.
