Atiku: I’ll accept defeat if younger aspirant wins ADC presidential ticket

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar says he will accept defeat in the 2027 presidential race if a young aspirant beats him to clinch the African Democratic Congress (ADC) ticket.

Speaking in an interview with BBC Hausa, Abubakar said he would support and mentor such an aspirant.

However, the former vice-president said he could not confirm if he would be running for president for the umpteenth time. 

“This is only the beginning. Our priority is to establish the party and gain a strong following,” Abubakar said when asked if he would contest.

“If I run for office, and a young man defeats me, I will accept that. The party we have joined now prioritises youth and women.”

Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate; and Rotimi Amaechi, former governor of Rivers; have both shown an interest in the ADC ticket. Both politicians are younger than Abubakar.

‘I LEFT PDP BECAUSE OF CRISIS’

Abubakar resigned from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in July, accusing the party of straying from its founding ideals.

Abubakar told BBC Hausa that he left the PDP because moles from the All Progressives Party (APC) had infiltrated the party.

“Besides, that is one of the reasons we set up ADC, which I am a member of,” he said.

Abubakar said the PDP is divided “because the APC government in power has decided to use some party leaders to frustrate efforts of having a strong opposition that could challenge the government”.

“As the day went by, the crises in PDP were growing, and the hope of resolving it was speedily vanishing because the government was allegedly using some senior members of the party to destabilise the party further, and we could see that in their actions and utterances,” he said.

“I could have taken some firm decisions to fix the party if I were the chairman or secretary of the party, or someone who listened to me was the chairman or secretary. Sadly, the people occupying those positions have different interests that are primarily personal to them.

“Regarding the ADC, our goal is to establish the party structures at the state level. We have already established the national leadership, and they are working on ensuring the state and local government structures are strengthened and ready for the 2027 elections.”

Abubakar, who is 78 years old, was the PDP’s standard-bearer in the 2023 election.

The politician will be 81 by the time the next presidential election comes around in 2027.

Abubakar has run for the number one office six times, but has been on the ballot as a presidential candidate on three occasions — 2007, 2019, and 2023.