Veteran journalist and former presidential aide, Reuben Abati, has declared that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has firmly established himself as the undisputed master of Nigeria’s political game following the outcome of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary.
Speaking during Monday’s edition of Arise Television’s Morning Show, Abati said the president’s reported 11 million votes at the party primary sent shockwaves across the political landscape and delivered a powerful warning to opposition forces ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“I think we should get to a point in this country where we should start a Tinubu school of politics and strategy, because what President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has done over the weekend is to show that he’s the owner of the game,” Abati said.
The veteran broadcaster pointed to the massive margin between Tinubu and his challenger, Stanley Osifo, who reportedly polled just over 1,000 votes, describing the result as a political statement capable of rattling opposition leaders, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and other presidential hopefuls.
According to Abati, the implication of the APC primary outcome is that opposition parties must now confront the daunting task of securing more votes than the figures already recorded by Tinubu within his own political base.
He, however, raised concerns about the credibility and accuracy of the figures announced during the exercise, noting that some APC primaries held over the weekend struggled with even basic vote counting procedures.
“And yet during the various events that you have seen over the weekend, to even count 1,2,3, basic arithmetic, which you start primary school with, was a problem for that particular political party,” he said.
