Former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi has announced his resignation from the African Democratic Congress (ADC), citing escalating internal crises within the party and broader concerns about Nigeria’s political environment.

In a statement posted on X on Sunday, Obi said his decision followed deep reflection and what he described as “silent pains” experienced while operating within the country’s political system.

He said Nigeria’s political space has become increasingly hostile, characterised by intimidation, insecurity, suspicion, and discouragement, which he believes undermine genuine 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 faced unfair criticism and internal pressure in political spaces he had joined in search of reform-driven collaboration, adding that humility is often misinterpreted as weakness in the political culture.

“Some who publicly identify with you privately distance themselves or join in unfair criticism,” he stated.

He clarified that his exit from the ADC was not due to personal disagreements with party leaders, including former Senate President David Mark and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, both of whom he said he continues to respect.

According to him, the decision was influenced by recurring internal disputes, legal battles, and unresolved political conflicts that have distracted the party from focusing on national priorities.

“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,” he said.

He further explained that entrenched political conflicts and interference had made effective party organisation difficult.

“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,” Obi said.

Obi stressed that he is not motivated by personal ambition, insisting that his focus remains the welfare of Nigerians.

“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 his departure from the ADC, he reaffirmed his belief in a better Nigeria, insisting that competent and compassionate leadership is still achievable.

“A new Nigeria is possible,” he declared.