Atiku Abubakar Says His Political Migrations Are Underpinned By Principles And Founded On Democratic Ethos.

Atiku Abubakar, erstwhile vice-president of the country has been one of the most visible political players since the advent of the Fourth Republic in 1999.

With one of the most formidable
political organizations in the country, Abubakar has been one of the most persistent presidential contenders in the country’s modern history, having first made his mark in the match-up with the late Bashorn Moshood Abiola for the ticket of the defunct Social Democratic Party, SDP in the 1993 presidential contest.

Abubakar’s preparation for the presidency after the inauguration of the Fourth Republic was helped by the now rested National Democratic Project, NDP, a quiet NGO founded and financed by him to research into virtually every segment of the socio-economic fabric of the Nigerian state. Abubakar’s power of persuasion, extensive patronage across the political class and his famed deep pockets may have been his staying power as a political prodigy.

However, over the years, his surefootedness on the political terrain has turned into an issue. One of the founders of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Abubakar upon an orchestrated campaign against him in that party slipped out to join others in founding the defunct Action Congress, AC in 2006. In 2008 he returned to the PDP and last year again walked out on the party.

Abubakar, however, remains unfazed asserting that his political migrations are underpinned by principles and founded on democratic ethos.  Atiku Abubakar recently fielded questions from Vanguard on his mission, message and manner of politics among other issues affecting the nation. Excerpts:

You left the PDP where you were a founding member to join APC. Was that decision influenced by your speculated interest in the 2015 presidential election?

If I had a choice, I wouldn’t have abandoned a house of which I was a key family member. The PDP was founded according to certain democratic principles of internal democracy. If you cannot practice democratic principles within, how do you preach democracy to the rest of the country? Internal democracy was systematically destroyed so badly that the party (PDP) is owned by the president rather than the people.

Internal democracy

The President decides who he wants to be party chairman and imposes his choice on everybody. We thought this was wrong and the party as then led didn’t like our opposition to the idea of killing internal democracy.

Those of us seeking reforms were perceived as obstacles and in 2005, they started the policy of de-registration to get rid of me and my supporters. The party was restructured in such a way that nobody should dare indicate interest to contest against the President at the primaries. I was so badly treated and consequently had to leave PDP and join AC in 2007. And the lack of internal democracy is still there.

The primary reason for my leaving the PDP in 2007, and now was largely influenced by a principle, and not actually my desire to contest presidential elections. And if, indeed, I have such ambition, I believe such aspiration is legitimate.