Former Edo State governor, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, and the Deputy National Organising Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Nze Duru, on Monday, took a swipe at former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, describing him as a “serial loser” who has failed to reform or stabilise any political party he has joined.
Oshiomhole and Duru made the remarks while reacting to Atiku’s registration as a member of the African Democratic Congress, where he officially picked up a membership card earlier in the day.
Oshiomhole, who spoke during a live interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, described Atiku as a serial defector, while dismissing his chances in the 2027 election.
He said, “I heard Atiku say he was a founding member of the APC. That is partly true. He was a founding member of the PDP, and according to him, what he predicted would happen to the PDP has come to pass.
This was a man who, as vice-president, a number two citizen, from 1999 to 2007, decamped from the party rather than reform it so others could build on it. He then ported to the APC to become, as he claimed, a founding member of the party.
“Buhari defeated him in the primaries, and again he went back to the PDP. So Atiku, as a former vice president of the PDP, could not fix the party. He could not reconstruct it, provide leadership or use the influence he had built.”
Oshiomhole argued that Atiku lacked the capacity to lead Nigeria, alleging that his political history showed a pattern of abandoning parties any time he failed to secure a presidential ticket.
So if you couldn’t fix your party, how can you lead the way to fix Nigeria? He left the APC only after he lost the ticket. He is so much in love with the PDP, I think, for the purpose of contesting elections. Yet, he could not build the PDP,” he said.
According to him, Atiku had “contested every election and keeps losing elections,” noting that the only victory he ever achieved was under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, with whom he later fell out.
“The only one he won was with Obasanjo. But he ended up attacking Obasanjo and had to decamp as a sitting vice president,” Oshiomhole added.
He also dismissed the political relevance of former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, claiming he “failed as a minister of transportation.”
Duru took a swipe at Atiku’s claim that opposition was just beginning months to a crucial election, saying the political landscape was still too fluid to determine which platform would emerge as the main challenger.
“If the opposition has just begun a few weeks or months to the 2027 election as he claimed, then we may not know the true position of the political parties in Nigeria. As of the last count, we have so many of them. There is the PDP, Labour Party, and the coming together of the ADC as a coalition,” he said.
Duru, however, said the APC would not underrate any opposition challenger
We are not in any case underwriting or underrating any person. We are not even aware that any of these parties have chosen a candidate for the 2027 election. We do not know the political party that is the main opposition party in Nigeria,” he said.
Atiku formally joined the African Democratic Congress on Monday after picking up his membership card at his Jada 1 Ward in Adamawa State, marking a major shift ahead of the 2027 general elections.
His move, which followed his July resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party over “irreconcilable differences,” drew large crowds and prominent political figures, including former Governor Bindow Jibrilla and Senator Aishatu Binani.
Shortly after registering, Atiku wrote on X, “It’s official — AA,” and told journalists, “The real opposition has begun.”
His decision aligns with a broader opposition coalition involving Labour Party’s Peter Obi, Amaechi, former Kaduna Governor Nasir el-Rufai, ex-Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, and others who had earlier agreed to adopt the ADC as a shared platform to challenge the ruling APC in 2027.
Meanwhile, the crisis rocking the African Democratic Congress deepened on Monday as the Nafiu Bala-led faction disowned Atiku’s registration, insisting the former vice president was “not yet a recognised member.”
In a statement signed by the ADC Director of Media and Public Affairs, Christopher Okechukwu, the faction declared the exercise “illegitimate” and in violation of the party’s internal procedures.
He said, “This registration was conducted through individuals who are not recognised by the ADC’s National Headquarters and therefore lack the authority to register new members.
“We have consistently urged Mr Abubakar to complete his registration with the duly constituted and authentic party executives in his locality, a step he has yet to take.”
The faction warned that Atiku’s move could be part of a “broader strategy to leverage the ADC while awaiting reconciliation with the Peoples Democratic Party,” adding that similar patterns had been observed in the past.
Okechukwu urged Atiku to follow due process, saying the ADC “is not a vehicle for personal ambition but a movement committed to democratic renewal,” and assured him of full membership rights once he registers properly.
The dispute comes as the ADC continues to battle a leadership crisis, with a case before the Federal High Court challenging the legitimacy of David Mark’s national leadership — a case the party says must be settled before integrating new coalition partners.
Atiku’s ally and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, was absent at Atiku’s registration in Jada.
Poor planning by the former vice president is responsible for me not attending the ceremony. We agreed for Sunday for the event and I arrived in Yola for the ceremony, only for Atiku to shift the event to Monday.
“I have my personal things to handle, I have schedules for my activities, so you cannot just change the gear while the car is in motion and expect me to be part of such a programme.
“I told Atiku Abubakar that my absence at the ceremony would give different interpretations to many people concerning our new party, but he gave deaf ears to my advice. Let them go ahead and do their thing with his people,” he said.
Atiku’s registration was conducted by Senator Sadiq Yar’Adua, the National Secretary of the ADC Registration and Mobilisation Committee.
Addressing supporters, Atiku declared, “Now I have picked my membership card of the ADC. Now, the real opposition has begun. We will chase the All Progressives Congress out of government.”
The Adamawa ADC chairman, Shehu Yohanna, who co-supervised the exercise, said Atiku’s registration marked the beginning of statewide membership enrolment across all 21 localb governments and wards.
Senator Yar’Adua echoed the call, urging citizens to register ahead of the 2027 elections.
