The African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council has accused former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso of advancing President Bola Tinubu’s political interests by urging former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to abandon his 2027 presidential ambition in favour of Peter Obi.
The ADC campaign council alleged that Kwankwaso’s intervention was aimed at creating divisions among opposition politicians and weakening their efforts to challenge Tinubu in the next general election.
Kola Ologbondiyan, Director of Media and Publicity of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, levelled the allegation in a statement on Friday, describing Kwankwaso’s position as self-serving.
He questioned why the former Kano governor was pressuring Atiku to quit the race rather than directing his criticism at Tinubu’s administration, which the ADC has accused of worsening economic hardship, hunger, poverty and insecurity.
“Rather than campaigning against President Tinubu, whose administration Nigerians are eagerly working to vote out, Kwankwaso is fixated on Atiku Abubakar,” Ologbondiyan said.
He maintained that Atiku remained the ADC’s preferred candidate for challenging the ruling All Progressives Congress, insisting that Kwankwaso’s call would not determine the direction of the opposition party.
The confrontation followed Kwankwaso’s appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, where he reaffirmed his position that Atiku should step aside for Obi ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Kwankwaso, who is aligned with Obi under the Nigeria Democratic Congress, has cited his longstanding political relationship with Atiku and the need for a new political arrangement as reasons for his appeal.
The former Kano governor has argued that the opposition must consider a different leadership arrangement, while the ADC campaign council insists that Atiku should retain his presidential ambition.
The dispute has exposed the growing difficulty facing opposition politicians seeking to unite behind a common candidate against Tinubu.
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