Chuks Okocha in Abuja  

The Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ambassador Iliya Damagum, has described the resignation of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar from the party as a familiar and recurring development in the party’s political history.
This is as Atiku’s political acolyte, Senator Ehigie Uzamere, has described the former vice president’s defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) as a spark in political darkness. 
Speaking to journalists at the weekend in Bauchi, Damagum said: “This is not the first time; we’re expecting him back.”
According to him, PDP was neither shocked nor overly concerned about Atiku’s exit, adding that the party was already accustomed to his repeated exits and returns over the years.
 The acting national chairman stated that the former vice-president’s movement aligned with a historical pattern, implying that the party viewed his latest resignation as part of his political strategy rather than a final break from the PDP. 
Damagum further hinted that the party’s calm response stemmed from the confidence it had in its own resilience or skepticism over the permanence of Atiku’s decision. 
This, he said, was a sequel to reports that he was forming a new political platform, ADC, in preparation for future elections.
But an acolyte of the former vice president, Senator Uzamere, in defence of the defection, said that, ‘Atiku Abubakar’s resignation from the PDP and his bold defection to the ADC were nothing short of a masterstroke of conviction.
He added that the action was an act of political clarity rooted in moral courage.
According to Uzamere, ”in a time when the soul of Nigeria stands at a dangerous crossroads, when compromise has become currency and silence is mistaken for diplomacy, Atiku’s departure is not merely a shift in party allegiance, it is a clarion call to patriots.
“It is a defiant trumpet sounded in the valley of political decay. Like a mighty river finally breaking free from the damned confines of complacency and recycled leadership, his courageous stance has unleashed a torrent of hope and possibility.

”His decision echoes the timeless words of Winston Churchill: To each, there comes in their lifetime a moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do something unique to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified.’

”Atiku has not only answered that call, but he has seized it with both hands. In doing so, he becomes more than a political figure; he becomes a symbol of renewal. The torch of truth he now bears will illuminate a path forward for a nation weary of broken promises and suffocated dreams.

”At this moment, this defection will not be forgotten. It will echo through time as the day a seasoned statesman chose principle over partisanship, truth over tradition, and the future over the failed past. A principled man who chose to walk away from undeserved denigration, rather than join the fray. It is a turning point that may well guide Nigeria’s ship of state away from the shoals of despair and into the deep waters of national rebirth.

 ”Atiku’s bold move is a spark in the political darkness. Let it catch fire in the hearts of Nigerians yearning for something more, something just, and something new.

Atiku had on July 14, 2025, resigned from the PDP, citing irreconcilable political differences