Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has said that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar will not emerge victorious in the 2027 presidential election.
Wike, who spoke to newsmen during an inspection of ongoing infrastructure projects in Kuje and other parts of the FCT on Thursday, said Atiku’s repeated electoral bids were the only way he remained politically relevant.
“I encourage him to run. It seems that is the only way he stays relevant. But 2027 is not available for him,” Wike said.
Wike described Atiku as a consistent opposition figure who has repeatedly lost elections, insisting that the next presidential contest is out of Atiku’s reach.
He further challenged the African Democratic Congress (ADC) chieftain to account for his performance during his tenure as vice president under former President Olusegun Obasanjo between 1999 and 2007, declaring that “2027 is not available for Atiku.”
Atiku has made six attempts at the presidency, appearing on the ballot three times—in 2007, 2019, and 2023.
Meanwhile, Wike’s statement is coming after Atiku during an interview on Arise Television Prime Time programme on Wednesday, criticised the administration of President Bola Tinubu, saying it had not performed well.
Wike said: “Atiku is a serial failure, there is a certain age you will reach in life, you will be able to say, look, at my level, this government has done well in this area, this government has not done well in this area. But it will be very wrong, and Nigerians would be laughing at such a person making that kind of statement that nothing has been done.
“I am sure he lives in FCT, let him compare FCT now and when he was the Vice President for eight years and now, that we are just in government for almost three years. Can he compare what is FCT today and what it was when he was VP?
“So, I don’t know who is the one that told him that this government has not achieved anything. I would be surprised if he said this government has achieved a lot. He is a serial opposition person, there’s nothing we can do about it.
“It is unfortunate for him. But let him leave this 2027, it is not available for him. I believe by 2031, he should be 82 years old. I don’t know. We would encourage him to run. Even if he doesn’t want to run, I would encourage him to run. That is my position”.
