The Presidency has warned former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, against pursuing another presidential ambition in 2027. Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, in a statement posted on his verified X handle, said any move by Atiku to re-enter the race would run contrary to the country’s long-standing North-South power rotation arrangement, which……
The Presidency has warned former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, against pursuing another presidential ambition in 2027.
Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, in a statement posted on his verified X handle, said any move by Atiku to re-enter the race would run contrary to the country’s long-standing North-South power rotation arrangement, which he argued has underpinned political stability since 1999.
His reaction followed comments by Atiku during a television interview on Wednesday, where the former vice president declared his intention to contest the presidency “for the last time” in the next general election.
Responding, Onanuga dismissed the renewed ambition as disruptive, insisting it ignores the unwritten agreement on rotational leadership between the North and the South.
“This Atiku will never learn,” he wrote, accusing the opposition figure of attempting to “disrupt Nigeria’s power rotation arrangement.”
The presidential aide recalled that during the 2023 election cycle, Atiku, then flying the flag of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), contested the presidency despite calls for the ticket to be zoned to the South after the tenure of a northern president.
According to him, that decision deepened internal divisions within the PDP and contributed to the party’s loss at the polls.
READ ALSO: 2027 Will Be My Last Presidential Bid, Says Atiku
“His ambition fractured the PDP, leading to his resounding defeat at the polls,” Onanuga stated, adding that the former vice president appears poised to “repeat history” if he proceeds with his 2027 plan.
Onanuga also rejected Atiku’s argument that zoning should not apply, based on claims that the South has held power longer than the North since 1999.
He described the position as “dubious political arithmetic,” noting that the perceived imbalance was the result of exceptional circumstances, including the death of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, which led to the emergence of then Vice President Goodluck Jonathan.
Such developments, he argued, do not invalidate the broader understanding of rotational presidency.
The Presidency maintained that with former President Muhammadu Buhari completing two terms in office, it is only fair for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a southerner, to also serve out a full tenure.
“Since Buhari completed his eight years, Tinubu too must complete his own,” Onanuga said.
He further cautioned Atiku to “bury the thought of running again,” warning that another presidential bid would end in “spectacular failure.”