The decision of Ahmadu Fintiri to dump the Peoples Democratic Party for the All Progressives Congress on Friday has triggered cracks within his cabinet, as Adamu Atiku, son of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, declined to follow him to the ruling party.
Fintiri formally declared his exit from the PDP in a statewide broadcast, revealing that 22 out of the 24 commissioners in his administration aligned with him in joining the APC.
But Adamu, the Commissioner for Works and Energy Development, alongside the Commissioner for Livestock, Maksha Atiku, were conspicuously absent at the Government House during the announcement.
Checks showed that their names were missing from a handwritten list bearing the signatures of cabinet members who defected with the governor, an indication that both officials chose to remain in the PDP.
A senior official in the state government, who requested anonymity, said Adamu’s decision was rooted in allegiance to his father, stressing that crossing over to another platform could send conflicting political messages about the former vice president’s standing.
The source further disclosed that Maksha Atiku, regarded as a loyalist of Atiku Abubakar, equally resolved to stay in the PDP in solidarity with the party’s leadership.
In a related development, the PDP’s National Working Committee under the leadership of Tanimu Turaki condemned the governor’s defection, describing it as an act of betrayal and accusing him of abandoning the platform that propelled his political career.
