APC captures Atiku’s home state as Fintiri joins ruling party

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar home state of Adamawa on Friday fell into the hands of the All Progressives Congress, APC ,ahead of the 2027 elections after state Governor Ahmadu Fintiri led 22 commissioners and special advisers, state chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and other stakeholders to join the ruling national party.

Fintiri is the eighth governor to dump his party for the APC within the last one year: seven from PDP and one from the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP).

His defection now brings to 30 the number of governors in APC.

Atiku tried to downplay Fintiri’s action, stressing that political realignments are not new.

Reacting to the development, the Tanimu Turaki faction of the PDP raged at Fintiri for his action and condemned it as an act of cowardice.

The Adamawa State Governor, however, said his decision was well thought out, necessitated by “recent political developments at the national level,” and taken in the overall developmental interest of the state and its people.

Speaking in an early morning statewide broadcast, he pledged that his defection would not diminish his commitment to the welfare of the people.

His administration, he said, “remains conscious of the moral responsibility imposed by the people’s trust.”

Fintiri argued that aligning with the APC would enable the state to support and leverage the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu, particularly in the areas of social welfare, infrastructure, housing, and inclusive economic development.