BY VICTOR BUORO – With political activities already gaining momentum ahead of the 2027 general elections, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has stepped up country-wide consultations in furtherance of what close aides acknowledged as his bid for the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential ticket.
Insiders hinted that the latest of such engagement was a private meeting which the former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) flag-bearer in the 2023 presidential election held in Abuja on Monday with former governor of Zamfara State and senator representing Zamfara West in the upper legislative Chamber, Abdulaziz Yari.
According to the insiders’ information, the meeting held behind close doors at Atiku’s residence in the nation’s Capital with both sides maintaining studied silence on the agenda. Also, inquiries by journalists did not yield any positive results even as no official statement came from their as earlier expected.
However, going by upbeats in alignments and realignments of political forces ahead of the 2027 general polls, an ADC Stalwart, who preferred anonymity for now, hinted that things are already moving on a fast lane with political actor positioning themselves for pre-election maneuvering and strategic consolidation of alliances with the opposition coalition.
Another competent source hinted thus, “There is no denying the fact that we are are in a time of intense political change with new alliances forming across the country. But while no one has openly confirmed this meeting was for political purposes, you cannot rule out such possibility, especially given Atiku’s widely acknowledged bid for ADC’s ticket as its presidential flag-bearer come 2027.”
With Atiku having publicly dismissed reports suggesting that he intends to back out of 2027 presidential race in favour of another aspirant, one of his close aides hinted that their principal “is quite a strategic thinker and a likeable personality who has always remained in constant touch with his associates across party lines.”
“So as part of pre-election manoeuvring, one certainly expects him (Atiku) to engage in early plotting, both within the ADC as well as outside of political party affiliation as part of a broader opposition coalition to contest the next presidential election”, the associate said.
Competent sources within the ADC maintained that there is no cause for alarm as the coming days will continue to unveil more surprising political engagements with intensified and high-level interactions among political actors across board.
As expected, the meeting has also fuelled political speculations around former Governor Yari, who is a serving All Progressives Congress (APC) Senator with the history of independent mindedness as demonstrated when he went against the system to stubbornly contest the Senate presidency following the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly.
Refusing to step down for the APC anointed candidate, Godswill Akpabio, he lost the Senate presidency by 63 to 46 votes, alleging betrayal by some colleagues.
