Wike Blows the Whistle: Atiku, David Mark Left PDP After Failing to Hijack Party Leadership
In a no-holds-barred media chat on Thursday, Nigeria’s Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, exposed what he described as the real reason behind the mass defection of top political figures from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
According to Wike, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, ex-Senate President David Mark, and their allies did not leave PDP because of principle or vision they left because they failed to hijack the party’s leadership.
“David Mark wanted to be PDP National Chairman but was denied. That’s why he left for ADC,” Wike disclosed bluntly.
Wike accused the defectors of forming a coalition not to serve Nigerians, but to reclaim lost power and relevance. He questioned the moral credibility of politicians who, having spent decades in power, now claim to be the saviours of democracy.
“These are men who are bitter and angry because they are no longer in power,” Wike said. “Nigerians must be careful. They know these people too well. How long can they keep deceiving us?”
Power Games, Not Principles
Wike’s comments come on the heels of a dramatic move by Atiku, David Mark, and others to adopt the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as their new political platform ahead of the 2027 general elections a coalition they claim is aimed at unseating President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
But Wike suggests otherwise: the real motivation, he insists, is personal ambition, frustrated egos, and a thirst to control party machinery not genuine reform or ideology.
“The opposition has decimated itself,” Wike declared, suggesting that internal sabotage and unchecked ambition have rendered the so-called coalition toothless.
Hypocrisy or Strategy?
Critics have long accused the same political figures now regrouping under ADC of being architects of Nigeria’s enduring corruption and misgovernance. Their records are public: questionable privatizations, electoral manipulations, and an entrenched culture of impunity.
David Mark, for example, was Senate President during the years when budget padding scandals rocked the National Assembly. Atiku Abubakar, once the face of privatization under Obasanjo, has been dogged by allegations of shady deals and offshore assets exposed in international investigations.
Yet these same individuals now parade themselves as the vanguard of change, a paradox that Nigerians are increasingly rejecting.
2027: Will Nigerians Be Fooled Again?
With public trust in the political class at an all-time low, Wike’s blunt commentary may resonate with voters who are tired of recycled promises and desperate comebacks. His warning is simple: don’t be deceived by political rebranding. The faces are the same, only the party logos have changed.
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Wike Blows the Whistle: Atiku, David Mark Left PDP After Failing to Hijack Party Leadership