Senator representing Anambra Central, Victor Umeh, has urged former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to reconsider his 2027 presidential ambition and make way for younger aspirants.
Atiku recently confirmed that the 2027 general election would be his final attempt at the presidency, a position he has contested multiple times over the years.
The former Vice President also maintained that younger Nigerians seeking leadership positions should first acquire experience under older political figures.
“I personally believe that they require experience and tutelage from the older generation,” he said.
Speaking on Prime Time, a programme on Arise Television Prime Time, Umeh, who is also a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, said he expected Atiku to focus on mentoring younger leaders rather than returning to the ballot.
“I was thinking he would be at the point where he would be considering leaving the stage for younger people, but he said he is contesting,” Umeh said.
“So it means everything everybody has said over the past months did not resonate with him.
“And if he holds on to that ground that he cannot build the younger ones to succeed him and make him a father, then it means nobody is ready to concede an inch at all.”
Umeh warned that Atiku’s continued ambition could deepen tensions within the opposition, particularly around efforts to build a stronger coalition ahead of 2027.
“He has been running since 2003. We respect him — he is a strong politician with influence. But there is a time you say, ‘I’ve done it, let me prop up others,’” he said.
He further cautioned that rivalry among top opposition figures could weaken their chances against the ruling party, stressing the need for unity and restraint.
“If they go all out to wrestle, it may get to a point where some people will have bloody nose in the end and the thing that would suffer would be the party and this effort to bring viable platform that would contest the election against the ruling party will not make any sense,” he said.
Umeh also dismissed reports suggesting that former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi met with former Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi to negotiate any step-down arrangement, describing the visit as routine political consultation.
“This is a season for consultations. It is normal for people aspiring for the same office to talk to each other,” he said.
“Obi’s visit was a noble one with good intentions. They were not discussing stepping down. That is a misrepresentation.”
He added that Amaechi was fully aware that no such withdrawal discussion took place.
