2027: Atiku Should Not Contest Presidential Election, Says Shehu Sani

Former Kaduna Central lawmaker, Shehu Sani, has said former Vice President Atiku Abubakar should not contest the 2027 presidential election, arguing that the contest should be left to southern candidates.

Sani made the comment in a post on social media, on Thursday, September 17, while weighing in on the debate over the rotation of political power between the North and South.

He said the 2027 contest should feature President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Peter Obi, Omoyele Sowore, Seyi Makinde, Adewole Adebayo, Donald Duke and other southern candidates.

“The 2027 political contest should be between Tinubu, Peter Obi, Sowore, Makinde, Adebayo, Duke and other Southern Candidates,” Sani wrote.

According to the former lawmaker, the South should be allowed to complete an eight-year tenure before power returns to the North in 2031.

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“The South should complete its eight years. Its not constitutional but it’s equitable,” he said.

Sani argued that the informal principle of power rotation should be considered in determining the political contest, saying, “We should not bury our heads in the sand and deny the realities and complexities of our history.”

He added that the North should have what he described as an “unchallengeable right” to the presidency in 2031.

“The North should have an unchallengeable right in 2031,” Sani stated.

He further warned that those rejecting power rotation in 2027 should not expect the principle to be observed when power is due to return to the North.

“Those who say there shouldn’t be respect for the principle of Rotation of power in 2027,should know that it WILL NOT be respected in 2031,” he said.

Sani’s comments come after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) published its final list of 18 presidential candidates for the January 16, 2027 election.

The list includes Tinubu, Obi, Sowore, Makinde, Adebayo and Duke, among others.