Fact-Check: Old Video of Atiku Abubakar’s Son Joining APC Falsely Mislabeled as Proof of His Father’s Support for Tinubu

Claim: Atiku Abubakar has declared support for President Bola Tinubu, leaving Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso as the major opposition figures.

Verdict: Misleading.

Full story

A post shared on X by an account named “Anambra 1st son” (@UchePOkoye) claims that former Vice President and the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has declared support for President Bola Tinubu, adding that only Peter Obi of the Nigerian Democratic Congress and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, remain as major opposition figures.

Published on October 19, 2026, the post includes a video bearing the AIT Live caption “Atiku’s son, Abba defects from PDP to APC,” dated January 16, 2026. The accompanying caption reads, “Atiku has declared his support for Tinubu; only Obi and Kwankwaso are the major opposition!” 

The post presents the footage as evidence that Atiku himself now supports Tinubu. It has since generated over 120,000 views, more than 1800 likes and over 400 reposts.

A screenshot of the X post

However, NDRFactCheck finds this claim to be misleading.

Publicly available evidence shows that the video documents the political defection of Atiku’s son, Abubakar Atiku Abubakar, popularly known as Abba, and not a declaration of support for Tinubu by the former vice president.

Media reports published at the time confirm that Abba defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) on January 15, 2026. Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin and other APC leaders received him at the National Assembly in Abuja. During the event, Abba announced his decision to join the APC and pledged to support Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027.

AIT Live reported the defection on January 16, 2026, matching the date displayed in the video embedded in the viral post. Premium Times and Channels Television also reported the development, identifying Abba as the person who joined the APC and pledged support for Tinubu.

These reports establish that the footage concerns Abba’s political decision, not his father’s.

More importantly, Atiku publicly distanced himself from his son’s decision. In a statement published on January 15, 2026, he described Abba’s move as a personal choice and said he would not coerce his children over their political convictions.

Atiku also criticised the APC-led administration, citing what he described as poor governance and the economic and social hardships facing Nigerians. He reaffirmed his commitment to working with like-minded Nigerians to provide a credible alternative.

Channels Television reported these remarks, making clear that Atiku did not adopt his son’s decision to support Tinubu as his.

The X post takes authentic old footage of a political event and places it alongside a claim that attributes the son’s political position to his father.

Although the defection shown in the video happened, the caption misrepresents what the footage establishes.

The post’s additional assertion that only Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso constitute the major opposition is also a political characterisation, not a fact established by the footage.

Conclusion

The claim that Atiku Abubakar has declared support for President Bola Tinubu is false. The video shows his son, Abba, defecting from the PDP to the APC in January 2026 and pledging support for Tinubu’s re-election. Atiku described the decision as personal, criticised the APC government, and reaffirmed his commitment to pursuing an alternative.

The footage is genuine, but it has been mislabeled to suggest that father and son share the same political position.

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