As ADA’s protem leaders, Ricketts, Elayo, formally quit APC, PDP

By BASHIR ADEFAKA

Nigerians, especially in North and some parts of the South, are now more resolved to come out enmasse to vote, stand by, protect and defend their votes as well as push from the polling units through to the final coalition centres to see that those they vote for are the leaders declared for them as winners. Anything short of this, some of these angry electorate say, will make officials to be held responsible for what follows.

The coast keeps getting clearer by the day with very resilient members of the political class doing the alignments and re-alignments towards the big battle for the soul of Nigeria in less than two years time from now.

Among them are Chief Akin Ricketts and Barrister Musa Abdullahi Elayo, both profoundly sound and well grounded in their respective careers just as they equally parade quality quantity in terms of political prowess that have we worked for them in all their respective endeavours in the past as contributors of progress and social justice to the nation’s democratic system.

Ricketts is former Chairman of the Board of Nigeria Port Authority (NPA) and had earlier had his touch on the administration of Cross River State as Commissioner for Information, while Elayo, a lawyer, was Minister of State for Justice, who served along with the late Cicero and Second Republic Governor of Old Oyo State, Chief Bola Ige, when he was the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice.

Both leaders have cut a niché for themselves in their respective fields of agriculturist and enterpreneurship and law practice, and are down-to-earth persons by human character, practical, unpretentious and easy to relate to.

To peak the struggle, they resigned their membership from their respective parties of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). In doing that they wrote their respective wards making the decision real.

Chief Akin Ricketts sent his own letter to APC Chairman Ijiman Ward, Ugep, Yakurr Local Government Local Government of Cross River State through a letter dated June 15, 2025 saying, “I write to inform you of my decision to withdraw my membership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), forthwith.

“This is to enable me further my political beliefs and aspirations, elsewhere as new political realities emerge in our dear Nation.

“Thank you for all the enormous support and loyalty extended to e all through my membership of the party. Please accept the assurances of my highest esteem, always.”

In a resignation letter dated Thursday July 10, 2025, and addressed to the PDP Chairman and Ward Secretary of his Iwagu Ward, Keana Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, Elayo said his decision followed “a period of deep reflection and consideration” of his political beliefs and principles.

“I write to formally tender my resignation as a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), effective from 10th July, 2025. This decision comes after a period of deep reflection and consideration of my political beliefs and principles,” the letter read in part.

“While I remain grateful for the platform, opportunities, and relationships the PDP and the people have offered me in the last 26 years, I have decided to let go of my membership of the party.

“I bear no grudges against any party member, even though I had cause to be in the courts as well as face a suspension from the state chapter of the party in my attempt to entrench internal democracy, respect for the party constitution and regulations, and to discourage impunity. Even at this, I have forgiven any person who thinks he or she has offended me,” he said.

With commitment full of unalloyed loyalty and untainted allegiance to the nation, Ricketts and Elayo will be remembered as first major trail blazers who broke the yoke of uncivilised self-interest dominance of the current order to say, because the ruling class are now nakedly vulnerable, beating them in the coming elections is doable. And to this end, they are propelled by some of the political juggernauts starting from Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, who was the first to wake up and began to move round mobilising others and who first secured the blessing of his leader, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (Rtd), a year earlier before his passing on Sunday July 13, 2025 and got the assurances of former President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida and Vice President Atiku Abubakar to go ahead.

El-Rufai, who Vice President Kashim Shettima recently at Mohammed Adoke’s book launch eulogised saying “hate him, love him but you cannot ignore him”, went on to double his effort and others joined, including former Anambra Governor Peter Obi, former Rivers State Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola, former Sokoto State Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, former Niger State Military Governor and Senate President David Mark, former Attorney General of the Federation Abubakar Malami (SAN), and former Minister of Sports Bolaji Abdullahi.

Huge as the big names that joined him are, they needed a political platform to which their national opposition coalition group’s ideas would be transfered for consolidation, since the democratic system in Nigeria does not allow for independent candidacy. So the need for human faces to actualise this transformational dream arose and that came with the personalities known as Chief Akin Ricketts and Barrister Musa Abdullahi Elayo, who became the first officers of the opposition coalition party on the path to 2027 general elections now awaiting registration by the publicly and not privately owned Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

With the experience of Amaechi, Aregbesola, El-Rufai and Mark among others blending and building up well together, the former Kaduna State governor had earlier bursted plans of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC)’s Tinubu-led Federal Government not to register the ADA in the president’s alleged tactics to weaken credible opposition ahead of 2027 when he hopes to get re-election unopposed through his one-party drive, despite repeatedly denying ever muting such plans. Tinubu by world of mouth said he never had a plan to drift the country’s into one-party state electorally but his practice or body language, he does exactly what he denied. His perception of capability to win re-election only by coercing, allegedly, all opposition governors remains undeniable.

Tinubu publicly said much as he does not want a one-party system, he loves to see the opposition party destroyed. Even as members of his government, party and supporters clubs, are encouraged by some of those utterances and body language of him, the opposition coalition politicians remain undaunted and Ricketts and Elayo deserve a thumb up for their resolve being the first to lead the way with human face at a time some members were not ready to be seen.

To further cement the resolve of their hearts and minds to continue, regardless of mudslinging by the ruling class, the former NPA chairman, Akin Ricketts, former minister, Musa Elayo, ditched the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) a big blow, respectively, as they have now clearly dumped the formerly successive Africa’s biggest parties believed to have been destroyed and only being laid on the slaughter slab for a kill any moment from now by what one of Tinubu former Special Assistant described as unholy between him and Nyesom Wike, his administration’s Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Much had been said recently in his published profile, but Chief Ricketts strategic movement for the success the opposition coalition is recording currently cannot be underestimated.

Likewise, Musa Elayo, a former Minister of State for Justice and founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), formally resigning from the party after 26 years of membership will mean a great deal.

A strong advocate for internal democracy and party discipline, Elayo has had a history of challenging what he described as undemocratic tendencies within the PDP, leading to legal battles and a temporary suspension by the Nasarawa State chapter.

Although he did not disclose his next political move, there is strong speculation that he could join the African Democratic Congress (ADC), the party recently adopted as the platform for the emerging opposition coalition ahead of the 2027 elections.

Elayo is already Protem National Secretary of a bridge party between the movement and the ADC on their pathway to 2027, the All Democratic Alliance (ADA), which some members of the coalition are seeking to register as a new political party.

Elayo’s defection is seen as a significant development in Nasarawa State’s political dynamics, with analysts suggesting action by the royal blood could trigger further realignments as the countdown to 2027 intensifies.

With their journey out of APC and PDP and unapologetically counting themselves among the top echelons of the coalition group, either side currently, the signal for Tinubu is that the star for his 2027 ambition is dimmed because, in a situation where the masses impoverished due to weaponised poverty by the ruling elites, how the president ab his handers think there is anything Federal Might that the use of the military and police would achieve in collusion with INEC officials remains a question that only the masses not even Tinubu himself can answer.

Some concerned citizens are, however, warning President Bola Tinubu and the APC to perish such idea of using Federal Might as seen in the elections that brought him to power against the will Nigerians in parts of Nigeria including Rivers State, Sokoto State, Kaduna State among others.

This they said because Nigerians, especially in North and some parts of the South, are now more resolved to come out enmasse to vote, stand by, protect and defend their votes as well as push from the polling units through to the final coalition centres to see that those they vote for are the leaders declared for them as winners. Anything short of this, some of these angry electorate say, will make officials to be held responsible for what follows.