Why Atiku can’t be president in 2027- Ex–Presidential aide gives candid analysis
Why Atiku can’t be president in 2027- Ex–Presidential aide gives candid analysis
A former spokesman and former Director-General of Peter Obi Presidential Campaign Organisation, Dr Doyin Okupe, says the south ,and not the north,should produce the president in 2027.
Speaking in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) on Thursday in Lagos , Okupe said it was only fair to allow the south to produce the next president.
Okupe said though Alhaji Atiku Abubakar,the PDP presidential candidate in 2023 , was eminently qualified to contest in 2027, he did not think it was right for the PDP chieftain to be president.
The ex-Presidential spokesman said the problem with the idea of Atiku presidency in 2027 is geopolitics ,not age,adding the south should be allowed to complete its eight-year term ,just as the north did before the coming of President Bola Tinubu.
“Atiku failed in 2023, not because he was not a good person, but because people felt that a northern Muslim cannot succeed another northern Muslim after eight years.
“If Atiku still contests in 2027, he has a right. He is eminently qualified and one of the best we have, but geopolitics is an issue.
“The conditionality still persists, a southerner would have just completed four years and needs another four-year term.
“It’s not in the constitution ,but we agree that when a northerner does his eight years, a southerner will do.
“So, the north cannot now terminate the tenure of the south in 2027 .It is not going to work.”,Okupe said.
The ex-LP chieftain said Mr Peter Obi, the 2023 Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party could also vie for the highest office in the country in 2027, as a southerner.
He,however ,said it would be very difficult for Obi to dislodge Tinubu as the President working well for the progress of the country.
“Obi can contest. Obi is a young man, very dynamic and very ambitious; but geopolitics is important in a country that has not achieved horizontal and vertical unity.
“The person who is occupying the place right now, Tinubu, is also a southerner, who is doing well.
“We can see what this gentleman (Tinubu) is doing. I wish Obi luck, but it is going to be an uphill task,” he said.
On whether alliances of politicians and parties could unseat Tinubu in 2027, Okupe said he did not see any political gang-up working against the president.
According to him,alliances against Tinubu will fail because the participants will not be willing to give concessions .
“I have been in this game for 40 years and above. I came into politics in 1978. I have been in several talks, discussions and I have represented my party, my movement in several alliances.
“We have not attained that maturity to get to the level of being rational and reasonable and ready to give the necessary concession for a group interest. We are not there yet.
“Even if you look at our private businesses, go and check, 90 per cent of business partnership will crumble within the first three years.
“I wish those who are trying alliance, I wish them luck but it is going to end up the same way it has always ended up. All the alliances will end up in futility,” Okupe said.
On the alliance that brought ex-President Buhari in 2015, Okupe said that though he criticised the alliance, but the leader of the alliance, Tinubu, conceded everything to make it work.
“The man who spearheaded that alliance, has grown beyond this constitution of naivety and selfishness.
“You put up an alliance, you set up a dining table, you cook food, and say other people should go and eat it. It is not done anywhere.
“Everything ,he conceded so that the thing can work,” he said.
He expressed doubt in the readiness and willingness of opposition leaders such as Alhaji Atiku Abubakar (PDP), Peter Obi (LP), and Sen. Rabiu Kwankwaso (NNPP), mulling alliance against Tinubu in 2027, to concede for one another.
“If you look at it very well, that kind of maturity does not exist,”
Speaking about the performance of Tinubu, Okupe said that Nigeria was lucky that it was Tinubu that won the 2023 presidential election.
According to him, Tinubu has purpose, zeal and clarity of mind about where he wants to lead the country to.
Okupe said that it took Lin Kuan Yew of Singapore 31 years to bring Singapore from nowhere to the first world country that it is.
“It is either we want this country to move forward and be upgraded, or we want to keep playing politics and destroying the lives of our children, ” he said. (NAN)
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Tinubu mourns Abubakar’s passing, the Imam who shielded over 200 Christians in his mosque during communal riot
Tinubu mourns Abubakar’s passing, the Imam who shielded over 200 Christians in his mosque during communal riot
President Bola Tinubu has expressed deep sorrow over the death of Imam Abdullahi Abubakar, Chief Imam of Nghar village, Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau, who passed away at 92.
This is contained in a statement issued by Presidential Spokesperson, Mr Bayo Onanuga, on Friday in Abuja.
The late cleric gained national and international recognition in 2018 for sheltering more than 200 Christians during communal violence in Plateau.
Tinubu described Abubakar as an extraordinary religious leader whose life exemplified faith, courage and a deep reverence for the sanctity of human life.
“At such a time when tribal and religious tendencies seemed to overwhelm reason, Imam Abubakar stood firmly on the side of peace, benevolence and conscience.
“Mindless of the enormous risk to his own life, the noble cleric chose humanity over division, love as opposed to hatred and embrace rather than rejection,” the President said.
He said the Imam’s actions embodied the true essence of faith and delivered a powerful message beyond sermons.
The President noted that the cleric’s uncommon bravery earned him local and international honours celebrating peaceful coexistence.
“I urge religious and community leaders to imbibe and preach the spirit of tolerance, mutual respect and peaceful togetherness as expounded in the life of Imam Abubakar,” Tinubu said.
He prayed that God grants the late Imam eternal rest and rewards him for his courage and good deeds. (NAN)
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Govt. introduces solar installation, garment making, GSM repairs in jss curriculum
Govt. introduces solar installation, garment making, GSM repairs in jss curriculum
The Anambra Government has introduced 15 entrepreneurial subjects into the Junior Secondary School (JSS) curriculum to enhance students’ practical skills and foster an entrepreneurial mindset.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the new subjects include solar installation, garment making, GSM repairs, agriculture and processing, plumbing, tiling, POP installation and event management.
Others are bakery, hairstyling, make-up, interior design, CCTV/intercom installation, digital literacy, information technology and robotics.
Prof. Nkechi Ikediugwu, Chairperson ,Post Primary Schools Service Commission (PPSSC), while speaking at the occasion in Awka on Friday, said the initiative was aimed at repositioning education to meet contemporary needs.
Ikediugwu noted that in a rapidly changing world, education should go beyond theory and examinations to equip students with practical skills, creativity, innovation and an entrepreneurial mindset.
“The goal of the programme is to prepare learners, not only to seek jobs but to create value, generate employment and contribute meaningfully to the economic development of the state,”she said.
Mr Cyril Nwuche of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, delivered a paper titled “Building Entrepreneurial Secondary Schools: Why Every School Needs an Entrepreneurship Club”.
Nwuche said the introduction of entrepreneurial subjects showed that the government was on the path to transforming the state’s economy.
“Traditional academic instruction alone is no longer sufficient to prepare children for the future.
“There is the need for schools to embrace practical and skill-based learning to enable students to thrive in a dynamic global environment, ” he said. (NAN)
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Two men docked for allegedly defiling underaged girl
Two men docked for allegedly defiling underaged girl
The police in Lagos on Friday, charged two men before an Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court for allegedly defiling an 11- year-old girl.
The defendants are: Prince Tomnyie, 40, a businessman, who resides at Agege, and Micheal Adenuga, 24, a furniture maker, who resides at Atere Street in Lekki.
They are standing trial on charges of defilement, and had each pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The prosecutor, ASP Adegoke Ademigbuji told the court that they committed the offence sometimes in December 2024, and September 2025, at Langbasa Ajah and Igbara Lekki, Lagos .
The prosecutor alleged that the victim’s father, had taken his daughter for medical check and it was discovered that the minor had been defiled.
The prosecution alleged that the victim had told her father that his friend, Tomnyie, defiled her sometimes ago.
Ademigbuji alleged that the victim also mentioned the second defendant’s name who lives in their neigbourhood.
The offence contravenes the provisons of section 137 of the Criminal Law of Lagos, 2015.
The Chief Magistrate, Mr L. A Owolabi, granted the defendants bail in the sum of of N600,000 each, with two sureties each in like sum.
He adjourned the case until March 5, for mention. (NAN)
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