Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo has said Atiku Abubakar’s corruption-tainted past sets him apart from former President Muhammadu Buhari and undermines his hopes of winning Northern votes in the 2027 presidential election.
Keyamo made the claim on Saturday as he accused the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate of trying to discredit President Bola Tinubu’s support ahead of the All Progressives Congress (APC) campaign rally in Kaduna State.
Keyamo alleges plot to discredit Tinubu in the North
Keyamo accused Atiku of using online attacks, videos of people tearing down Tinubu’s campaign posters and claims of paid support to portray the president as unpopular in Northern Nigeria.
He also alleged that a letter claiming ₦2.3 trillion had been earmarked for the Kaduna rally was fake and intended to suggest that Tinubu relied on money to attract support.
The minister said Atiku was counting on Northern votes because he believed he lacked support in the South, where he claimed voters wanted the region to complete eight years in the presidency.
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Keyamo cited the 2023 election, saying Atiku lost every North-Central state and all Southern states except Osun.
He also accused him of sponsoring Southern presidential candidates to split votes in the region and improve his own chances in the North.
Minister questions Atiku’s 2027 calculations
Keyamo said the APC’s structures in the North had weakened his expectation of securing enough votes from the region to win the next presidential election.
He argued that even if Atiku won some Northern areas, losses in the Middle Belt and South could cost him the election.
The minister compared his expectations with Buhari’s Northern support in 2015, saying the former vice president had mistaken ethnic support for a winning strategy.
“He fails to realise that his corruption-laden past puts him poles apart from a Muhammadu Buhari, and that Northerners do not tolerate such persons with the putrid smell of corruption,” Keyamo said.
He ended his criticism by calling Atiku “a butterfly that thinks it is a bird”.
WHAT READERS SHOULD KNOW
The dispute is about the APC’s planned presidential campaign rally in Kaduna and the battle for Northern votes ahead of the 2027 election.
Keyamo’s argument is that Atiku cannot rely on the same level of Northern support he expects, particularly given his record and the APC’s political structures in the region.
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