TINUBU AIDE SLAMS ATIKU OVER ZONING COMMENTS, SAYS EX-VP “WILL NEVER LEARN”

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By:Tajudeen Aminat

The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has faulted former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over his remarks on North-South power rotation ahead of the 2027 elections.

He maintained that President Bola Tinubu should be allowed to complete two terms in office, insisting that the presidency should remain in the South until 2031.

“Since Buhari completed his eight years, Tinubu too must complete his own,” Onanuga wrote in a post on X on Thursday.

He further stated, “All Atiku needs to do is bury the thought of running again, as it is still the South’s turn in the 2027 election.”

The presidential aide accused Atiku of promoting a “self-serving argument” to justify what he described as an attempt to upset Nigeria’s informal power rotation arrangement.

“This Atiku will never learn. Once again, Abubakar Atiku has put forward a self-serving argument to justify his attempt to disrupt Nigeria’s power rotation arrangement,” he said.

Onanuga further noted, “In 2023, as a member of the PDP—a party that, like others, observes zoning—Atiku ignored the established arrangement and attempted to succeed a fellow northerner who had spent eight years in office.”

“His ambition fractured the PDP, leading to his resounding defeat at the polls,” he added.

The presidential aide’s reaction came after Atiku’s interview on Prime Time on Arise TV on Wednesday, where he addressed the zoning debate while responding to questions about his possible 2027 presidential ambition.

During the interview, Atiku rejected the idea of any binding national agreement on power rotation.

“No, I think it is an error and a mistake to say that there is an agreement on the issue of zoning in Nigeria.

“Let me tell you, the only political party that has a zoning provision in its constitution is the PDP. All the rest don’t have it.”

“So if anything, all the other political parties are either borrowing from or learning from the PDP’s zoning formula,” he said.

Atiku, however, expressed support for the principle of power rotation.

“I agree with the principle. In fact, I will go further back. In 2004, during the National Political Reform Conference under President Obasanjo, there was a debate involving the late Dr. Alex Ekwueme, who advocated rotational presidency,” he said.

On the balance of power since 1999, Atiku argued that the South has held the presidency longer than the North.

“But if we are talking about the zoning formula in the PDP, the South has governed for 18 years while the North has governed for 10. So who is actually in deficit if we are being fair?” he said.

He also expressed support for a consensus arrangement ahead of the 2027 election.

“The most practical option is to have a consensus,” Atiku said, adding that he would support whoever emerges, including Peter Obi or any other aspirant.

Atiku further suggested that the 2027 election may be his final bid for the presidency.

Reacting, Onanuga described Atiku’s position as “dubious.”

“His political arithmetic is questionable,” he said.

“He conveniently ignores the fact that the North’s shorter tenure resulted from the untimely death of President Umaru Yar’Adua, which led to President Goodluck Jonathan’s succession.

“This unforeseen interruption does not nullify the existing power rotation arrangement between the North and the South,” he added.