The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has advised former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to shelve any lingering hopes of becoming Nigeria’s president.
Atiku, who has contested for the presidency six times (either through primaries or as a party flagbearer), is widely believed to be considering another run in 2027, a move that continues to draw mixed reactions across the political spectrum.
Speaking during an appearance on TVC’s Journalist Hangout on Monday, Bwala said Atiku’s repeated failures at the polls suggest that it may not be his destiny to lead the country.
His words; ‘As per my former principal, if I have the opportunity to meet him face to face, what I would tell him is just this: ‘Your Excellency, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, you have to believe in destiny. God gives power to whomever he chooses, and it seems, from the facts on the ground, it may not have been God’s will for you to govern Nigeria’.
‘There are many other ways you can contribute, and since you have been a friend to President Bola Tinubu for many years, come together and bring your contributions towards Nigeria that both of you wanted to create for the Nigerian people so that your legacy will be that in your political dying days, you were able to achieve some of your dreams, albeit through your friend.
‘But if he insists that he wants to run and wants to become the president, as we are already seeing it playing out, his political ending may not be as palatable as he is thinking because right now, from his political family, he has lost substantial people, probably sixty to seventy per cent’, Bwala added.
Obi’s alliance with Atiku would be a ‘mistake’.
Bwala also addressed the growing speculation about a possible alliance between Atiku and Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, warning that any such move could be politically disastrous for Obi.
He said, ‘And then the conversation with Peter Obi – Peter Obi will be making the biggest mistake of his life to now come together under the agreement that he will be a running mate because all of the people you are hearing ‘Obidient’ had only one contract with Peter Obi, that he will run for president.
‘The minute Peter Obi drops the idea of running for president himself, I can guarantee you he will lose the majority of the people that are following him. This is without taking away the fact that Peter Obi himself may not be comfortable in that arrangement’.
Obi had previously served as Atiku’s running mate under the PDP in the 2019 general elections before launching his own presidential bid in 2023.
Bwala also dismissed recent efforts to form a coalition ahead of the 2027 elections, saying the movement has already failed due to the growing influence of President Bola Tinubu across political lines.
‘But those who are close watchers of events and activities and are not moved by emotions will see signs that indicate the coalition is dead on arrival. Governors on the platforms of their parties are joining us; senators are joining us. Everywhere they think they have strong structures, the people are coming under the tutelage of President Bola Tinubu.
‘President Bola Tinubu may not be perfect; he may make mistakes, but one fact is clear: his head and his heart are right. There is no politician alive today who has the political gravitas to gather people as much as President Bola Tinubu. We are not bothered’.
