IKOYI, Nigeria – Bode George, a prominent member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and a member of its board of trustees (BoT), has warned that the party will collapse if former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar becomes the PDP’s candidate for the 2027 presidential election.
Speaking on Politics Today on Channels Television on Monday, April 14, 2025, George argued that Atiku’s continued leadership of the party is incompatible with its core values and long-term survival.
“If Atiku were truly the leader of the party, he would have been fully involved in party affairs. The fact that he was the presidential candidate in the last election does not automatically make him a bona fide or permanent leader of the PDP,” George stated.
“If he is pursuing his own private interest, that is entirely different from the interest of the party.”
George emphasized that the PDP’s foundational principle, based on fairness and justice, calls for the next president to come from the South, following eight years of northern leadership.
“He (Atiku) cannot be the presidential candidate of the PDP in 2027. I maintain that since the north has had the presidency for eight years, it is only fair and just for the south to have its turn for another eight years. That is the doctrine and foundation of the PDP,” he said.
While George acknowledged Atiku’s constitutional right to run for president, he insisted that if Atiku were to secure the PDP ticket for 2027, it would mark the end of the party.
“Now, I can’t say Atiku cannot contest—he has the constitutional right to do so. He can go to any other party and contest. But if he picks the PDP ticket in 2027, that will be the end of this party,” George warned.
“I want to make it clear: if he secures the ticket through any form of manipulation—as happened the last time—we will not accept it.”
Atiku, the PDP’s candidate in the 2023 presidential election, lost to Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Before the 2023 primary, there was strong opposition within the party, including from a group of five governors, who pushed for the presidential ticket to be zoned to the south, in accordance with the PDP’s rotation system.
This demand grew louder as the northern-led administration of President Muhammadu Buhari was completing its second term.
In the wake of Atiku’s victory in the 2023 primary, several party members withdrew their support, leading to heightened tensions within the PDP.
However, ahead of the 2027 election, there have been discussions about forming a coalition to challenge the APC.
Atiku has been a key figure in these talks, but the ongoing internal divisions in the PDP, as demonstrated by George’s comments, could complicate the opposition’s efforts.
On Monday, April 14, 2025, PDP governors collectively ruled out the possibility of a merger or coalition with any other political party for the 2027 elections, reaffirming the party’s stance on maintaining its independence as it prepares for the next electoral cycle.
