October 02, (THEWILL) — Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has dismissed media reports that he intends to withdraw from the 2027 presidential race to make way for a younger aspirant under the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
In a statement issued on Thursday, Atiku’s media adviser, Paul Ibe, said the former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was misquoted in his recent interview with the BBC Hausa Service.
Reports earlier on Thursday had claimed that Atiku told the BBC Hausa Service he was willing to drop his 2027 presidential ambition in favour of younger contenders.
Ibe, however, maintained that a careful review of the interview, both in Hausa and its English translation, showed that “at no point did the former Vice President expressly state, suggest, or even imply that he intends to step down for anyone.”
According to him, Atiku, 78, only emphasised that young Nigerians and other aspirants are free to contest, stressing that he would support any younger candidate who emerged victorious in a competitive primary.
The statement read: “It has become necessary to clarify certain misrepresentations arising from the reportage of an interview granted by His Excellency, Atiku Abubakar, to the BBC Hausa Service by some sections of the media.
“What Atiku Abubakar clearly and unambiguously said was that young people, as well as other prospective presidential aspirants, are free to enter the contest. He further stressed that if a young candidate were to emerge through a competitive primary, he would readily support such a candidate without any hesitation.
“While interpretative journalism is a legitimate aspect of reporting, stretching interpretation to the point of mischief is unacceptable and must not be encouraged. For the records, therefore, the insinuations attributed to Waziri Adamawa from his BBC Hausa interview are inaccurate and do not reflect what he actually said.”
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