Wike’s Aide Says Atiku’s Exit from PDP Is No Surprise
Lere Olayinka, who works as a media aide to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has spoken about Atiku Abubakar’s decision to leave the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) again. He said Atiku’s move was not surprising and called it “good riddance to bad rubbish.”
Atiku, a former vice president of Nigeria, left the PDP recently and sent a letter to his ward chairman in Adamawa State. In the letter, dated July 16, 2025, he said he was leaving because of deep disagreements within the party. Atiku also described his decision as painful since he helped build the party from the start.
Olayinka shared his thoughts during a live TV interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily show. He stated that Atiku’s exit gives the PDP a chance to regroup and fix itself ahead of the 2027 elections. According to him, Atiku has been moving in and out of the party for years.
He joked that the news headline should have read “Atiku Abubakar leaves PDP again” because this is not his first time doing so. Olayinka noted that Atiku has left the PDP several times since 2007 and keeps returning when things don’t work out elsewhere.
He also blamed Atiku for weakening the PDP over the years. He said Atiku was responsible for stopping the PDP from winning Lagos in 2003, even when he was vice president. Olayinka added that Atiku later apologized for that mistake in 2018.
He reminded Nigerians that Atiku once contested for president under another party in 2007 while still holding a PDP ticket as vice president. He also said that Atiku played a big part in the crisis that removed the PDP from power in 2015.
Olayinka believes that Atiku only cares about becoming Nigeria’s president and nothing else. He warned that Atiku might even return to the PDP again if things don’t work out for him in the new coalition under the African Democratic Congress.
In his view, Atiku’s exit could help the PDP recover and move forward. However, he also said it might already be too late for the party to fix all the damage that Atiku’s actions have caused over the years.