2027: Lukman Advises Atiku, Kwankwaso, Obi, Others to Drop Their Presidential Bid

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

A former National Working Committee (NWC) member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Salihu Moh’ Lukman, has advised key political figures in the country to abandon their presidential aspirations ahead of 2027 and instead provide leadership for a proposed new political party.

 Lukman directly urged former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, and Mallam Nasir El-Rufai to prioritise party-building over personal ambitions.
He also extended the advice to former APC members and opposition figures, including Rotimi Amaechi, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, and Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal.

In a statement in Abuja, titled: “Re: Early Outline of the Permutations for 2027”, Lukman reacted to the recent National Conference on Strengthening Democracy in Nigeria.  
He argued that if these leaders set aside their personal ambitions, it would prevent the imposition of candidates in 2027 and foster a stronger political alternative.

 The former Director General of the Progressive Governors’ Forum (PGF) also criticised the political class, stating that many opposition and displaced politicians lacked the necessary credentials to emerge as better leaders.

“Based on layperson’s legal knowledge, many of these politicians would be adjudged to being accessories, whether before or after, to our current political travesty.
“Given their records of service, they are most likely to be worse than former Presidents Goodluck Jonathan, Muhammadu Buhari and now President Tinubu.  

“Based on their records, they exhibit intolerant dispositions and poor relationships on accounts of which they have mismanaged their transitions and are today hardly in control of political structures in their states.  
“Some of them, on account of their influential roles in past administrations and the failures of those administrations should be humble enough to take a backseat in effort to build a strong coalition to strengthen Nigerian politics. Instead, it is more like a case of unrepentant show of shame.

“Just imagine Alh. Atiku Abubakar, or Mr. Peter Obi, or Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, or or Dr. Kayode Fayemi, or Sen. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal or Mal. Nasir El-Rufai, or other opposition and displaced leaders with ambitions to contest becoming leaders of the new party.  
“Imagine all these people decide that in order to lay a solid foundation for the emergence of strong party, all of them or majority of them will instead aspire to become part of the leaders of the new party.  

“Certainly, if that happens, the new party can guarantee collegiate leadership similar to what we had in second republic political parties especially the NPN. Failure to have that could simply mean that the new party risked being oriented in old ways with political culture of imposition becoming dominant,” he said.

Lukman noted that in the last one year, he has engaged virtually all the aforementioned leaders on the need to cut a new trajectory of taking the path of honour and providing new political leadership to the country.