PDP Leaders Finally Reveal Why Members Are Dumping Party for APC - Shocking Details

.... Closed-door meeting of Atiku, David Mark, top PDP chieftains exposes Tinubu-led APC's alleged manipulation tactics and looming 2027 showdown

All Facts Newspaper | 2/7/2025

ABUJA - The cracks in Nigeria's main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), have once again widened - this time with explosive revelations by its top leaders who are accusing the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of using threats, blackmail, and patronage to break the soul of the opposition and coerce defections.

This damning verdict came after a high-stakes, closed-door meeting held Tuesday at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, where prominent PDP stalwarts, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and ex-Senate President David Mark, gathered to chart the party's future amidst a deepening internal crisis and massive defection wave.

"The heatwave unleashed by the APC Federal Government through threats, blackmail and patronage has forced elected officers in government to abandon the PDP," the communique from the meeting read.

The communique was nothing short of an indictment of President Bola Tinubu's administration. It accused the APC-led government of deploying state power to destabilize the PDP, weaken democratic processes, and erode the nation's global image.

"Nigeria is now a diminished country and an embarrassment on the world stage,ÔÇØ the PDP leaders lamented, adding that "the APC government, which came into being on the false and evil propaganda to save Nigeria from PDP, is now a disaster to our nation and therefore must be voted out of power."

Sources at the high-powered gathering confirmed that beyond the APC's alleged sabotage, the internal chaos within the PDP has also pushed many key figures to consider jumping ship - especially as whispers grow louder about Atiku Abubakar's potential 2027 presidential ambition.

Insiders say some influential Northern politicians - including a serving federal minister and a North East governor - are not comfortable with another Atiku bid, fearing that his success could disrupt the "Southern turnÔÇØ of power, which they claim should last until 2031.

"It is increasingly clear that some factions are not comfortable with Atiku contesting again. Their fear is that he could win, which would mean a return to the North before the South completes its turn,ÔÇØ a top source disclosed.

But Atiku appears unfazed. His allies - many of whom attended the meeting - are reportedly weighing whether to fully break away with him or retain party membership while forming a broader opposition front.

The strategic meeting, chaired by David Mark, was attended by heavyweights including ex-National Chairman Uche Secondus, former governors Sule Lamido, Liyel Imoke, Babangida Aliyu, Sam Egwu, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, and Senator Abdul Ningi.

Also in attendance were former National Women Leader Josephine Anenih, ex-PDP Youth Leader Abdullahi Maibasira, former Publicity Secretary Kola Ologbondiyan, and former Organizing Secretary Senator Austin Akobundu.

The leaders warned that the current state of the PDP - weakened by poor leadership and manipulated defections - is a direct result of both internal mismanagement and external sabotage.

"Since our loss in the last presidential election and the exit of Dr. Iyorchia Ayu as National Chairman, our dear Party has never been the same again,ÔÇØ the leaders admitted.

But the ultimate game plan is now clear: form a formidable coalition that can wrest power from the APC in 2027.

"The meeting encourages all well-meaning PDP members and other patriotic Nigerians to join the coalition,ÔÇØ the communique urged, stressing that the alliance would be based on shared values - democracy, national unity, institutional reform, security, and the political will to combat corruption.

While the APC remains silent in the face of these weighty accusations, political analysts believe the ruling party's unrelenting pressure campaign, coupled with PDP's failure to uphold internal party discipline, has left the opposition on life support.

But with this meeting setting the tone for an electoral war ahead of 2027, one thing is certain: Nigeria's political landscape is on the verge of a major shake-up - and the battle lines are being drawn.