Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso’s public advice that Atiku Abubakar should withdraw from the 2027 presidential race and focus on his traditional title is both premature and poorly grounded. Coming from the vice-presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, the suggestion that Atiku should simply step aside for Peter Obi reveals more about Kwankwaso’s own calculations than about any genuine concern for national interest.
Reacting to the statement, Hon. Toyin Anibire Adams, Founder and Convener of the Obailukan Strategic Support Group for Atiku — OSSAT, said the claim of superior northern influence deserves scrutiny.
“What commanding political grip does Kwankwaso actually hold across the North today?” Hon. Anibire Adams asked. “The reality is even clearer in his home state of Kano. The same Rabiu Kwankwaso who leads the NNPP and was credited with bringing the sitting governor to power has now seen that structure collapse. The governor he empowered has since defected to the APC. If Kwankwaso cannot maintain control in Kano, the state that defined his political base, what influence does he truly have across the entire North?”
A politician who could not fully secure his own backyard is now attempting to dictate the terms of a national contest to a candidate with far broader and more enduring networks. That posture lacks credibility, the OSSAT Convener stated.
Second, if Kwankwaso truly believes he and Obi represent the stronger alternative, the logical course is not to issue retirement notices to Atiku. It is to compete openly or to explore genuine coalition on equal terms. Advising a more established national figure to quit while promising to “take care” of him if they win is neither statesmanlike nor strategic. It is an attempt to clear the field without first proving superior organisational strength or electoral appeal.
Third, confidence about 2027 should be tempered by recent experience. The same wave of certainty that surrounded Peter Obi in 2023 did not produce the expected outcome. The Obidient movement has since suffered from loss of direction, compounded by Obi’s own political restlessness — moving between platforms within a short period. A ticket built on shifting foundations and overconfidence risks repeating the same pattern of high expectation followed by disappointment.
Atiku Abubakar does not require Kwankwaso’s permission to remain in the race. He has contested, organised, and maintained relevance across multiple election cycles. The decision on who leads the opposition challenge in 2027 will not be settled by one politician’s public call for another to retire. It will be settled by the votes of Nigerians, based on reach, organisation, message, and credibility.
Kwankwaso would serve his cause better by consolidating whatever remains of his northern support and presenting a coherent alternative than by attempting to retire a rival through public pronouncements. Politics rewards strength and clarity, not premature declarations of who should step aside. The 2027 election will test all candidates on their actual capacity, not on who issues the earliest advice to withdraw.
Signed: Comrade James Onifade
Media Executive,
Office of the Obailukan Strategic Support Group for Atiku — OSSAT
