2027: Atiku dismisses age concerns, asks ‘do I look 80?’

The African Democratic Congress presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has dismissed concerns about his age ahead of the 2027 presidential election, asking critics whether he looks like someone who is approaching 80.
Atiku stated this in an interview with BBC Hausa published on Friday, while responding to concerns that his age could affect his ability to provide effective leadership if elected.
The former vice president was responding to a question on whether his age could affect his ability to provide effective and healthy leadership for four years if elected.
The interviewer noted that Atiku would be “almost or nearly 80 years old” by the time Nigerians vote in 2027 and asked what he would say to those who considered his age too advanced for the presidency.
Responding, Atiku referenced President Bola Tinubu’s age before challenging the premise of the question.
“You went and voted for someone who is 80, I mean 90 years old. How old is President Bola, 90?” he asked.
When the interviewer corrected him, saying Tinubu was not yet 80, Atiku responded, “Do I look to you like someone who has reached 80 years of age?”
The exchange comes as Atiku intensifies preparations for the 2027 presidential election and seeks to rally opposition politicians behind a coalition aimed at challenging the ruling All Progressives Congress.
Atiku also rejected claims that he had become an obstacle to the opposition coalition, saying he was instrumental in bringing the group together.
“That is a baseless accusation levelled against me. I was actually the one who initiated the coalition. Nobody else…I, Atiku Abubakar, started it,” he said.
According to him, most of the politicians who started the coalition remained together, despite disagreements among some of the major opposition figures.
He identified NDC presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, as the two major opposition figures who had left the group.
“It was just Kwankwaso… he was with us at first, then he left,” Atiku said.
Asked about Obi, he added, “Yes, and also Peter Obi. It’s just them, but the rest of us are still here continuing our work.”

Atiku, however, said there was still a possibility of the opposition politicians working together before the 2027 election.
“Nothing is impossible, by God’s grace.
“One day you’ll see… we have agreed to work together to save this country and its poor citizens, Insha Allah,” he said.
The former vice president also criticised the Federal Government’s handling of the removal of the petrol subsidy, saying the savings from the policy had not been adequately accounted for.
“I did not oppose the removal of the oil subsidy, but where is the money? Where did it go?” Atiku asked.
He said the funds were supposed to help reduce poverty, improve education, address insecurity and create opportunities for young Nigerians.
“Where is the money now? It seems they are just stealing it,” he said.
Atiku also promised to restore the petrol subsidy if elected president, while demanding that anyone who had stolen the money refund it.
“If elected, I will bring back the oil subsidy, and whoever stole the money must refund it,” he said.
He further said the subsidy could have been removed without causing the level of hardship being experienced by Nigerians if the savings had been properly used.
“The government successfully removed the subsidy, but we do not know where the money went.
“If they had used the money for development, to solve security problems, for education, and to create opportunities for the youth, it would be different,” Atiku said. NECO question papers were sold for N3,000 before exams — Minister FG counters Obi, Kwankwaso over Tinubu’s re-election chances Shettima took over Borno as governor at height of Boko Haram — Ex-Minister
The former vice president also defended his decision not to sign a peace accord involving opposition politicians, saying he questioned why the incumbent government was not included.
He said, “Why is it always only us in the opposition that you bring to sign, but you never bring the incumbent government to sign as well?”

Atiku added that he saw little value in the exercise if the ruling party was excluded.
“So, if you don’t bring the incumbent government to come and sign, I see no point in going to sign it,” he said.
Atiku also claimed that President Bola Tinubu is 90 years old, saying he has evidence to prove the allegation in court.
The former vice president also said he was healthy, strong and capable of serving as president, arguing that he should be allowed to make his experience and abilities available to Nigerians.
Atiku said, “I have a president who is 90 years old now, and who is sick, and I am healthy, I am strong, so why would I not make my services available to my fellow countrymen?”
The interviewer, however, challenged the claim, saying, “The president is not yet 90, and we cannot confirm nor deny anything about his age.”
But Atiku insisted that he had evidence to support his claim.
“I have evidence that he is, and I will present it in court,” he said.
Asked why he continued to seek the presidency after previous attempts, Atiku said contesting for the office was within his constitutional right.
He said his political journey had been marked by several attempts to contest for elective office, adding that his previous bids had faced opposition from military authorities.
“I have contested on the ballot two times, or three times, let me say. Let me give you my political history. I ran for governor four times, because at that position, the people who were in charge of our transition to democracy were military, and I was so anti-military, that any time I won, they would disqualify me.
“And the last was when there was even an attempt of my life, and I went into exile. So I’ve never found anything easy in my life,” he said.
The ADC candidate maintained that he was fit to contest the presidency, saying, “Why should you question me on my right? It is my constitutional right. I am strong, I am healthy, I am agile.”
Asked what made him the best candidate for Nigerians, Atiku said his experience, competence and patriotism qualified him for the position.

“Because things are not going right. Things are not going right,” he said.
He added, “I have the experience, I have the competence, I have the patriotism. So why would I not make all this available to the service of my country?”
On insecurity, particularly in northern Nigeria, Atiku blamed the government for what he described as inadequate attention to the country’s defence needs.
He said Nigeria needed more security personnel and better equipment to tackle insurgency and insecurity.
“Well, I believe it is the irresponsibility of government, because they have not paid attention to our defence needs.
“One, the defence is undermined. In other words, we have not have enough boots on ground in this country, not good equipment,” he said.
Atiku recalled that during his time in government, he had raised concerns about Nigeria’s security personnel strength, comparing the country with Egypt.

“I remember when we were in office, I told the president that, look, we are over 200 million people and yet we have less than 200,000 policemen. Egypt that has about 80 million had one million policemen on the streets. And therefore, there is peace there,” he said.
The former vice president promised that if elected in 2027, his administration would tackle insecurity within its first year in office.
“I believe within one year they should be able to see that. And believe me, within one year, we can control this insurgency and insecurity that is all over the place,” Atiku said.

Fawzi Kehinde
Fawzi is a journalist and subeditor covering a wide range of beats including politics, metro, and international news, among others. He also optimises stories for digital audiences.

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