The African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council (ADC-PCC) has accused former Kano State Governor and Senator, Rabiu Kwankwaso, of promoting President Bola Tinubu’s political interests following his call for former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to withdraw from the 2027 presidential race in favour of Peter Obi.
The council warned that Kwankwaso’s position could aggravate disagreements within opposition ranks and undermine efforts to build a united front against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the forthcoming general election.
The allegation was contained in a statement issued on Friday by Kola Ologbondiyan, Director of Media and Publicity of the ADC-PCC, in response to comments made by Kwankwaso during an interview on Channels Television. The former governor had discussed the opposition’s electoral prospects and the possibility of political negotiations ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Reacting to the interview, Ologbondiyan questioned why Kwankwaso was urging opposition leaders to make concessions rather than directing his attention towards the performance of the Tinubu administration.
According to the ADC spokesman, the council believes that the country’s prevailing economic and security challenges, including rising living costs, hunger, poverty and insecurity, should be at the centre of political discussions.
“Rather than campaigning against President Tinubu, whose administration Nigerians are eagerly working to vote out, Kwankwaso is fixated on Atiku Abubakar, the ADC candidate, whom millions of Nigerians believe can restore economic stability and make life affordable again,” he said.
Ologbondiyan further questioned the motivation behind Kwankwaso’s intervention, suggesting that the former governor’s comments raised concerns about his political objectives and his intended role in shaping opposition arrangements ahead of the next election.
He alleged that Kwankwaso was more concerned about establishing himself for a possible presidential bid in 2031 than contributing to efforts to develop a common opposition strategy for the 2027 polls.
The ADC-PCC spokesman also drew attention to Kwankwaso’s reported description of the office of the vice-president as a “spare tyre”. He argued that the remark, considered alongside the former governor’s call for Atiku to make way for Obi, raised further questions about his political priorities and calculations.
Despite Kwankwaso’s considerable political influence in Kano State, the campaign council maintained that the opposition should not regard any individual as indispensable to its electoral prospects in the state.
To support its position, Ologbondiyan referenced the 2003 and 2007 presidential elections, arguing that former President Muhammadu Buhari secured victories in Kano without Kwankwaso’s backing. He maintained that the former governor’s established political base should not prevent other opposition figures from pursuing electoral support in the state.
“What Kwankwaso is doing amounts to advancing President Tinubu’s interests. It is a familiar APC strategy to use willing collaborators within the opposition to create confusion, sow division, and weaken the collective efforts to bring about political change,” he alleged.
The council further accused Kwankwaso of contributing to divisions among opposition politicians at a time when parties seeking to unseat the APC would need to resolve their differences, negotiate effectively and agree on a viable electoral strategy.
It urged Nigerians not to be distracted by what it described as political manoeuvres aimed at weakening opposition groups before the 2027 general election. According to the council, political leaders should concentrate on issues affecting citizens instead of allowing disagreements over the choice of a presidential candidate to dominate the political discourse.
Ologbondiyan also questioned Kwankwaso’s political consistency, citing his movement across several political parties over the years. He referenced the former governor’s political journey through the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the All Progressives Congress (APC), a return to the PDP, and subsequently the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and other opposition platforms.
The ADC-PCC argued that these changes raised concerns about the consistency of Kwankwaso’s political alliances and the direction of his current engagements with opposition leaders.
The council also challenged claims regarding the former governor’s national political standing, pointing to his fourth-place finish in the 2023 presidential election as evidence that his influence in Kano should not automatically be interpreted as nationwide electoral strength.
“Kwankwaso must come to terms with the realities of the national political landscape. His influence should not be confused with the capacity to win a presidential election. If his political relevance were as extensive as he suggests, why did he finish fourth in the last presidential election?” he queried.
In comparing the political reach of Kwankwaso and Atiku, the ADC spokesman argued that the former vice-president’s relationships across different parts of Nigeria could prove significant in the party’s preparations for the next presidential contest.
He maintained that Atiku’s longstanding political engagements across the country’s six geopolitical zones gave him a broader national profile than Kwankwaso’s predominantly Kano-based political influence.
“Atiku Abubakar is a cosmopolitan, detribalised, and nationally recognised political figure who has built relationships across the North, South, East, and West over more than three decades,” he said.
Ologbondiyan also cast doubt on whether Kwankwaso’s advocacy for Obi was genuinely intended to foster cooperation among opposition parties. He alleged that personal ambition, rather than a shared commitment to defeating the ruling party, could be influencing the former governor’s position.
“There is a growing perception that Kwankwaso’s support for Peter Obi is driven more by his personal ambition than by a genuine commitment to the opposition’s collective objective of defeating the APC,” he said.
The ADC-PCC spokesman called on Nigerians and the media to direct greater attention to the Tinubu administration’s record and the challenges facing the country, particularly economic hardship, insecurity and the rising cost of living.
He insisted that opposition leaders should prioritise these concerns in their political engagements instead of allowing disagreements over candidate selection and future political arrangements to overshadow issues affecting the public.
Concluding its position, the campaign council appealed to Kwankwaso and his associates to reconsider their stance and support Atiku’s presidential ambition under the ADC platform.
“Our campaign, however, invites Kwankwaso and his allies to reconsider their position and support the formidable candidacy of Atiku Abubakar,” Ologbondiyan said.
“Atiku remains our preferred pathway to defeating President Tinubu and ending the hunger, poverty, and insecurity that the APC administration has foisted on our nation.”
