The former lawmaker explained that what pushed him out of the ADC party was a leadership crisis while addressing supporters in Sokoto on Saturday.
A former Nigerian Senator Abubakar Gada has announced his decision to return to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) after dumping the African Democratic Congress (ADC) ahead of the 2027 general election.
The former lawmaker explained that what pushed him out of the ADC party was a leadership crisis while addressing supporters in Sokoto on Saturday.
The former senator, who represented Sokoto East Senatorial District between 2007 and 2011 on the platform of the PDP and defected to the ADC in 2025, said his decision was informed by the need to “reclaim and rebuild” the PDP in the state.
He accused former Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, of stalling the growth of the ADC in the state by allegedly refusing to fully identify with the party months after both politicians signalled interest in joining it.
According to Gada, he and Tambuwal were initially regarded as joint leaders of the ADC in Sokoto.
“My humble self and Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal were considered the leaders to drive the party in the state,” he was quoted as saying by PUNCH.
“But leadership means identifying with the people, showing commitment and taking responsibility. For six months, we raised the hope and tempo of the party, but he refused to come and sit down with us to build it.”
Gada further alleged that Tambuwal’s actions created confusion about his political loyalty.
“You cannot be talking to APC on one hand, being promoted as vice-presidential option for Peter Obi on the other hand, and still refuse to register or allow your followership to register in ADC,” he alleged.
Supporters of the PDP at the event described Gada’s declaration as a boost to the party’s prospects in the state.
One of them, Alhaji Hamza Yabo, said the development was significant to the PDP’s revival following its defeat in the 2023 elections.
Another supporter, Alhaji Hamza Gatawa, said the process of “reclaiming the party” had begun.
Hajia Mariam Kabi also urged women and youths to rally behind Gada’s ambition ahead of 2027.
“We should give him total support to become the next governor,” Kabi said, while calling on youths who have turned 18 to register for their voter cards.
The ADC had gained traction in Sokoto politics in 2024 following internal crises within the PDP. Tambuwal, who governed Sokoto State between 2015 and 2023 and currently represents Sokoto South in the Senate, has not publicly responded to Gada’s allegations.
Gada is expected to formally announce his return to the PDP at the state level in the coming weeks as political alignments and realignments intensify ahead of the 2027 polls.
However, the Sokoto State chapter of the PDP dismissed Gada’s declaration.
Reacting, the party’s Publicity Secretary, Hassan Sayinnawal, described the claim as a joke, saying the party was unaware of any move by the former lawmaker to rejoin it.
“We are not aware of his coming to PDP. Nobody received him, and even in his ward and local government of Gada, they are not aware of his coming to PDP,” he said.
“As I’m talking to you, I am the state publicity secretary of the PDP in Sokoto State. I can tell you we are not aware of even his intention to come to the PDP, talkless (let alone to defect) of decamping to it.
“He is not in our register at his ward, local government, state or even national level.”