Ex-VP Atiku in no position to speak for Nigerians on President Tinubu’s policies, campaign strategy – TMSG

 

The Tinubu Media Support Group (TMSG) said that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has no mandate from Nigerians to authoritatively challenge President Tinubu’s administration on policies and its campaign strategy in the run-up to the 2027 Presidential election.

This was after the Presidential Candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) questioned President Tinubu’s campaign schedule ahead of the elections.

In a statement by its Chairman, Emeka Nwankpa, and Secretary, Dapo Okubanjo, TMSG argued that former Vice President Atiku’s fixation on President Tinubu has become worrisome, describing it as an unnecessary obsession with no electoral value whatsoever to the ADC.

It said: “Like many Nigerians, we were not surprised that the former Vice President was quick to respond to President Bola Tinubu’s campaign schedule, limiting him to campaign rallies in 12 states to give him more time for governance.

“This is because it is turning into an unnecessary obsession for the opposition, but what we find even more laughable is his claim that President Tinubu is reluctant to engage directly with Nigerians on his administration’s performance.

“It is a fact that the President has always been answerable to Nigerians and has not shied away from carrying them along in more than three years of his administration.

“We dare say that a politician that has been rejected at Presidential elections more than any Nigerian, living or dead, is in no position to speak for the same electorate that had always considered him unelectable.

“We still do not understand why President Tinubu’s decision to limit his presence at campaign rallies to keep his hands on governance has become a problem for the opposition.

“If the President had announced his readiness to attend all the rallies, these same folks would have been everywhere accusing him of abandoning governance for politics.”

The group also insisted that President Tinubu has done enough across all sectors to earn him a second term in office.

“For the avoidance of doubt, President Tinubu, since assuming office, has embarked on a series of economic reforms which have not only stabilised the economy but have also set the country on a path of steady growth.

“We are convinced that the more than 1.5 million beneficiaries of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) and their parents are prepared to speak with their votes against a candidate who has vowed to cancel all the policies the Tinubu administration introduced since assuming office.

“Also waiting for January 16 2027, to show appreciation with their votes are numerous families and friends of thousands of former Nigeria Airways staff who have just been paid N21bn in severance benefits owed to them more than twenty years after a government in which the former Vice President served that ultimately kicked them out of their jobs without paying them off.

“In addition to this are beneficiaries of tax reliefs for low-income earners and small businesses with a turnover of N100 million, as well as Nigerians who are benefiting from free Caesarean sections and free dialysis services in selected hospitals.

“These are just some of the people who do not need an Atiku or his media handlers to tell them how to vote. They have already heard the President loud and clear and would not be swayed by promises of a return to fuel subsidy.

” So when former Vice President Atiku claimed that the President was reluctant to speak with Nigerians, we wonder whether those living in the states where he would be attending rallies are foreigners.

“Rather than pontificate on Tinubu’s campaign strategy, we think he should pay more attention to his troubled campaign, which is anchored on a hazy plan to restore fuel subsidy to deceive eligible voters.

“Is it not strange that several weeks after the former VP and his team dropped snippets of his so-called production subsidy initiative, they have yet to provide details of a plan that is bound to put the economy on an upward trajectory, it added.

 

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