The camp of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has issued a strong warning to opposition political actors, asserting that insisting on zoning the 2027 presidential ticket to the South would be equivalent to entering the contest already defeated. In a statement released by his media aide, Olusola Sanni, Atiku described the push for a southern opposition candidate as self-defeating and intellectually dishonest, arguing that Nigerian political history offers no precedent for an opposition challenger from the same geopolitical bloc as a sitting president ever unseating that president.
Atiku's Camp Dismisses Equity Argument
The camp acknowledged that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) could reasonably retain its southern presidential configuration around incumbent President Bola Tinubu. However, they argued that the opposition had no business applying the same logic without a cold-eyed assessment of electoral realities. On the equity argument advanced by proponents of southern zoning, the Atiku camp was dismissive, labeling it as lacking substance.
Keyamo Criticizes NDC's Decision
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, also criticized the National Democratic Coalition (NDC) decision to zone its 2027 presidential ticket to Southern Nigeria for a single term. In a post on his X handle, Keyamo described the move as deceptive and politically desperate. He compared it to former President Goodluck Jonathan's 2011 pledge to serve only one full term, questioning the credibility and enforceability of the party's decision.
Keyamo specifically raised concerns about what would happen if Labour Party's 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, eventually emerges as the NDC candidate and wins the election. He asked, "So, what happens if Obi changes his party, assuming he wins, or as leader of the NDC, he gets the NEC of the party to reverse the decision, if in the unlikely event he wins?"
Keyamo: Decision Insults Nigerians' Intelligence
Keyamo further argued that the decision underestimates Nigerians' intelligence and reflects the opposition's growing uncertainty ahead of the 2027 presidential election. He stated, "This is an insult on the sensibilities of Nigerians; it smacks of outright desperation and actually accentuates the dilemma of the opposition as a whole in the 2027 presidential elections." He dismissed the move, insisting that it lacked seriousness and amounted to political fraud.
