Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has announced his departure from the African Democratic Congress, citing worsening internal crises within the party and broader national challenges.
In a statement shared on Sunday on X, Obi said his decision followed deep personal reflection and “silent pains” he had been carrying while navigating Nigeria’s political environment.
He described the country’s system as increasingly toxic, saying it had become marked by intimidation, insecurity, suspicion, and discouragement, which he argued often undermines sincere public service.
“We now live in an environment that has become increasingly toxic, where the system that should protect and create opportunities often works against the people,” he said.
Obi also said he had been subjected to unfair criticism and internal pressure within political spaces he previously joined in search of solidarity and reform-minded leadership.
“Some who publicly identify with you privately distance themselves or join in unfair criticism,” he stated, adding that humility is often misinterpreted as weakness in Nigeria’s political culture.
He clarified that his departure from the ADC was not due to personal issues with the party leadership, including former Senate President David Mark or former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, both of whom he said he continues to respect.
According to him, his decision was driven by what he described as the infiltration of unresolved political conflicts and recurring legal and internal disputes that have distracted the party from national issues.
“Let me state clearly: my decision to leave the ADC is not because our highly respected Chairman, Senator David Mark, treated me badly, nor because my leader and elder brother, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, or any other respected leaders did anything personally wrong to me. I will continue to respect them.
“However, the same Nigerian state and its agents that created unnecessary crises and hostility within the Labour Party that forced me to leave now appear to be finding their way into the ADC, with endless court cases, internal battles, suspicion, and division, instead of focusing on deeper national problems and playing politics built more on control and exclusion than on service and nation-building,” he said.
Obi said he has no personal desperation for political office, stressing that his focus remains on national welfare rather than positions.
“I am not desperate to be President, Vice President or Senate President. I am desperate to see a Nigeria where people can live in dignity, without hunger, fear, or displacement,” he said.
Despite leaving the party, Obi reaffirmed his belief in a better Nigeria, insisting that competent and compassionate leadership remains possible.
“A new Nigeria is possible,” he declared.