Saraki Still In Peoples Democratic Party, Aides Insist

Two chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara State yesterday dismissed claims that the former Senate president, Dr  Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has aligned with the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The PDP chairman in Kwara central,  Alh Isiaka Owolabi and the party’s director of Planning and Strategy, Engr Ibrahim Otukoko, made this clarification while featuring on a radio programme in Ilorin, the state capital.

The duo insisted that:” Saraki remains a committed and recognised leader of the PDP in Kwara, nationally and beyond.”

Otukoko described as  misleading the recent claim credited to the director general of the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS), Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman, that Saraki was working with the APC at the national level while leading the PDP in Kwara State.

According to Otukoko, “Saraki’s political standing within the PDP remains intact and unquestionable”, noting that attempts to link him with the APC were driven by personal interests rather than facts.

” Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki is today a committed leader of the PDP, fully aligned with the ideals, principles and vision of the party. Some politicians deliberately drop his name to gain relevance and attract attention,” he added.

Otukoko explained that Saraki’s role in facilitating Prof. Sulaiman’s appointment as DG of NILDS was done in good faith and at a time when the latter was a member of the PDP, stressing that such support did not translate into political allegiance to another party.

“If today Prof. Sulaiman chooses to change political direction that is his constitutional right. It has absolutely nothing to do with Dr. Saraki,” he said

For his part, Owolabi urged PDP members across the state to ignore distractions and remain focused on grassroots mobilisation ahead of the 2027 general elections, assuring that the party remains united and strategically positioned.