- His moves and body-language and the people around him indicate that he may throw his heart in the ring again for the 2027 presidential elections
Erstwhile Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose has told former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to shelve his ambition of leading the country.
Atiku had run for President in Nigeria in 1993, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019, and 2023, with three losses occurring at primaries.
His moves and body-language and the people around him indicate that he may throw his heart in the ring again for the 2027 presidential elections.
The 77-year-old, in an interview with Voice of America Hausa earlier this year stated that he has not given up on becoming Nigeria’s president, saying “God willing”, when asked whether he would try again.
Speaking on Atiku’s serial contest for the nation’s top job, Fayose said age was no longer on Atiku’s side and he would rather he did not vie for the presidency again.
Fayose spoke during an interview on Sunday’s edition of Channels Television’s Politics Today.
”I am sure at this stage with all due respect to him, he would rather want to stay away from politics of contesting elections again
”By the time Asiwaju(Bola Tinubu) will finish, Atiku Abubakar will probably be 80 or 81 so what will be the attraction?
”We should leave the stage when the ovation is loudest, I respect him and I think Nigerians are craving for a younger generation than ever before so on what basis will Atiku come and contest again,” he said
Fayose also said the former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Peter Obi is now the face and voice of the opposition and not Atiku.
He dismissed chances of his party, the PDP to defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, in the 2027 presidential election.
Lamenting the leadership crisis rocking the party, the former governor said PDP members no longer have a party.
”As I always say, we can defeat the APC but when we don’t have a party again, how can we defeat them?” He queried.
Fayose, who also urged Atiku to stop contesting elections in Nigeria, said, “when we complain about the APC and we don’t have a party and you can say you will do this and that, but when Obi is the voice of the opposition now.
“The press will call Obi than call the PDP and when the Publicity Secretary is suspending people and vice-versa, so where is the party