Akoni TV For your Socio-Politcial, Business, Sport and Entertainment News
Related Articles
The camp of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has warned opposition parties against zoning the 2027 presidential ticket to the South, saying such a move could make President Bola Tinubu’s re-election easier.
In a statement issued in Abuja, Atiku’s media aide, Olusola Sanni, said opposition parties must focus on strategy and coalition-building rather than sentiment or regional considerations.
The statement argued that the ruling All Progressives Congress may retain its southern presidential structure under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, but the opposition risks weakening itself if it adopts the same zoning approach.
According to the Atiku camp, no southern opposition candidate can realistically defeat a sitting southern president in Nigeria’s current political structure.
“The first and most obvious question is how a Southern opposition candidate can unseat a sitting Southern president,” the statement said.
It added that Nigerian political history shows no case where an incumbent president was defeated by a challenger from the same geopolitical zone.
The statement also argued that by 2027, the South would have held power longer than the North in the Fourth Republic, raising questions about fairness in zoning discussions.
It said political decisions should be guided by “strategy, coalition-building and electoral reality” rather than emotional arguments.
The Atiku camp also criticised what it described as hypocrisy in the zoning debate, referencing support for former President Goodluck Jonathan’s emergence in 2011.
It also acknowledged the South-East’s aspiration for the presidency but warned against symbolic or temporary political arrangements that do not lead to genuine inclusion.
The statement urged opposition parties to build a strong national coalition capable of defeating the incumbent government rather than relying on regional zoning politics.
It added that winning the 2027 presidential election would require strategy, unity and realistic political planning rather than sentiment.
