BY VICTOR BUORO, ABUIJA – Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, on Thursday, October 2, 2025, said that at no point did he expressly state, suggest, or even imply that he intends to step down his presidential ambition for anyone.
He stressed that what he clearly and unambiguously said was that young people, as well as other prospective presidential aspirants, are free to enter the contest, stressing that the insinuations peddled that he would step down for another was false.
Atiku further explained that he only said that if a young candidate were to emerge through a competitive primary, he would readily support such a candidate without any hesitation.
The former Vice President said that while interpretative journalism is a legitimate aspect of reporting, he however emphasised that stretching interpretation to the point of mischief is unacceptable and must not be encouraged.
These were contained in a statement by his Media Office signed by Paul Ibe in which it stated that it became necessary to clarify certain misrepresentations arising from the reportage of an interview granted by Atiku Abubakar, to the BBC Hausa Service by some sections of the media.
The statement emphasised that after a thorough review of both the video and transcripts of the interview – in the original Hausa and the English translation – it was evident that at no point did the former Vice President expressly state, suggest, or even imply that he intends to step down for anyone.
The statement further stated; “While interpretative journalism is a legitimate aspect of reporting, stretching interpretation to the point of mischief is unacceptable and must not be encouraged.
“For the records, therefore, the insinuations attributed to the Waziri Adamawa from his BBC Hausa interview are inaccurate and do not reflect what he actually said,” the statement insisted.
