A former minister of women affairs and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Josephine Anenih, has said that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar effectively abandoned the party after his defeat in the 2023 presidential election.
Speaking during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, Anenih claimed that Atiku has been inactive in PDP affairs and has failed to attend party meetings since the loss, raising questions about his continued commitment to the party.
Her comments follow Atiku’s formal resignation from the party in a letter dated July 14, 2025, addressed to the Chairman of Jada 1 Ward in Jada Local Government Area of Adamawa State.
In the letter, the former vice president cited “irreconcilable differences” and expressed disappointment over the direction the party has taken, which he said strays from its founding ideals.
Anenih said, “If you ask me, I would say he didn’t exit yesterday; he had exited after the last election, because after the last election, maybe he held a conference once or something, and that was it.
“He has not attended any meeting. We have even reached out to him.
“Even the women of the Board of Trustees went to him and we told him that the party is drifting because there is no leadership and we look at you as our ‘baba,’ as our leader and we expected you to take action, to be in the forefront, to give direction,” she added.
Despite Atiku’s exit, Anenih insisted that the PDP would remain strong, stressing that the party’s strength lies in its grassroots structure and committed members who are capable of ensuring its survival and growth.
“In 1998, we didn’t have all those people, and those of us who were there —grassroots people. We managed to put the PDP together, and we won. As Chief Bode George said, anybody can go, anybody can come.
“But for those of us who believe in the PDP, we will do our best, and we know that the PDP can never die on our watch. Maybe when we are dead, the PDP can die, but it won’t die before us.”
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