Former Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu, Hakeem
Baba-Ahmed, has said that President Tinubu and former Vice President Atiku
Abubakar should not contest the 2027 presidential election, arguing that the
country needs fresh leadership.
Baba-Ahmed stated this on Tuesday while appearing on the
Politics Today programme on Channels Television.
According to him, both political figures have a
responsibility to allow Nigerians to choose from a new generation of leaders.
He said that if he had his way, neither Tinubu nor Atiku
would run in 2027, noting that their decision to step aside would give the
country a better range of options.
He argued that President Tinubu may lack the capacity to
continue governing beyond 2027, adding that the president would have completed
a four-year term by then and should consider handing over to a younger,
healthier, and more governance-focused individual.
Baba-Ahmed also expressed a similar view about Atiku, saying
the former vice president owes the country the responsibility of not seeking
the presidency again.
He said: “I had an interview here where I said that if I had
my way, two people would not run in 2027. They will not run at all. They are
President Tinubu and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. They have a really
good chance of giving Nigerians a choice to pick the best candidate.
“The reason why President Tinubu shouldn’t run, I think, is
that he has run out of steam. I don’t think that he has the capacity to
continue to govern this country beyond 2027. I’m speaking honestly, without any
prejudice to him. I think he’s fulfilled his ambition and become president of
this country. By 2027, he would have served four years. It would have been the
best time for President Tinubu to say, ‘I need a younger person. I need a
healthier person. I need somebody who is more focused on governance.’
“And for Vice President Atiku, the same thing. They really
owe this country the responsibility to say, ‘We don’t have to be presidents in
2027.’ The country needs fresh blood. The country needs a new lease of life.”
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