The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has fired back at the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, over comments that the opposition coalition would not secure up to 10 per cent of votes in Rivers State during the 2027 presidential election.
Wike had reportedly made the remark on Saturday during a luncheon organised for candidates of the Rainbow Coalition in Rivers State, where he predicted that neither Atiku nor the ADC would make a significant impact in the state during the next general election.
Responding in a statement issued on Monday through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said Rivers voters were intelligent enough to determine their political future and could not be treated as the property of any individual.
“The votes of Rivers people are not your property, the people of Rivers State are not political slaves, they are intelligent, independent-minded Nigerians who will make their choices based on the realities confronting them and the future they desire for their children,” the statement said.
The former vice president argued that no politician, regardless of influence or access to federal power, could dictate how an entire state would vote.
Atiku also described Wike’s comments as a sign of growing concern within the camp of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the emergence of a united opposition coalition under the ADC ahead of the 2027 elections.
According to him, Nigerians are more concerned about rising living costs, insecurity and economic hardship than political forecasts made by public office holders.
The exchange is the latest in the escalating political rivalry between Atiku and Wike as political parties and coalitions intensify preparations for the 2027 general elections.
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