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| Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar |
President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday trivialised former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s defection from the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Atiku, who is widely expected to join the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), plans to seek the opposition party’s presidential ticket to run in 2019.
President Buhari told APC National Chairman Chief John Odigie-Oyegun at the Presidential Villa before the inauguration of the Tripartite National Minimum Wage Committee: “Accept my sympathy for losing a senior member of your party.”
As the President walked into the hall he looked towards where Oyegun was and made the remark jocukarly. Many people laughed as Buhari made his way to his seat.
There were indications yesterday that Northern leaders in the PDP are awaiting former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s verdict on Atiku before taking a position on the 2019 presidential ticket.
Those believed to be in the race for the PDP ticket are ex-Governors Sule Lamido and Ibrahim Shekarau as well as Caretaker Committee Chairman Ahmed Makarfi, who is also a former governor.
It was learnt that ex-President Goodluck Jonathan and Atiku are already reaching out to Northern leaders, including ex-President Ibrahim Babangida and other PDP founding fathers.
These include Gen. Ibrahim Obasanjo, Gen. T.Y. Danjuma, Babangida, ex-Head of State Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, Gen. Aliyu Gusau, and others who played active roles in restoring democracy in 1999.
