Presidency Rejects Atiku’s Position, Insists Tinubu Serves Two Terms

The Nigerian Presidency has pushed back against former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s recent remarks regarding the rotation of power between the North and South.

Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga stated that President Bola Tinubu is entitled to serve a full eight-year tenure.

Writing on social media, Onanuga described Atiku’s arguments as self-serving and an attempt to undermine established zoning conventions.

He pointed out that Atiku disregarded these same principles during the 2023 elections by running for office despite expectations that power would move to the South following Muhammadu Buhari’s two terms.

Onanuga also dismissed Atiku’s claim that zoning is strictly an internal matter for the Peoples Democratic Party, calling his analysis of power distribution since 1999 inaccurate.

He noted that the North’s time in power was shortened only by the death of Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in 2010, which allowed Goodluck Jonathan to succeed him.

The Presidency maintains that the accidental shift caused by that transition does not cancel the rotating power agreement.

Consequently, officials argue that because Buhari served eight years, it is necessary for Tinubu to do the same. Onanuga concluded by suggesting that Atiku should abandon his 2027 electoral ambitions, as the presidency should remain in the South.