2027: Gov Fintiri’s Defection Shows Atiku Isn’t Popular At Home, He Should Withdraw From Presidential Race-Presidency

The presidency hit out at former Vice President Atiku Abubakar on Friday submitting that the development that was recorded earlier in the day has shown that he is not popular at home and it will be unreasonable selling his candidacy to ‘outsiders’.

The presidency added that the best course of action for him is to withdraw from the 2027 presidential race.

Team@orientactualmags.com learned that President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, who said this in an x.com post after it was reported in the news that Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State has left PDP for APC on Friday, added that it is a significant political gain for the ruling party.

‘Adamawa Governor Umaru Fintiri joins the All Progressives Congress, APC, taking away Abubakar Atiku’s entire home base to President Tinubu’s party

With the presidential election less than a year away, Fintiri’s defection is surely a big blow to veteran presidential runner Atiku Abubakar.

If a politician is not so popular at home, he has no business selling his candidacy to outsiders.

The time is nigh for Atiku to consider retiring from politics and going to his second home in Dubai’ he wrote.

 Governor Ahmadu Fintiri had in a 14-minute televised speech on Friday announced that he, members of his cabinet and all PDP officials in the state have left PDP for APC in the developmental interest of the people of Adamawa State.

 ‘Fellow citizens of Adamawa State, I address you today in this manner due to the magnitude of what we have at stake, the regard we have for you and the consistent support we have always enjoyed from you.

In 2019, you voted for us overwhelmingly against an incumbent. In 2023, you repeated the same feat with even greater strength in spite of all odds. We have remained popular in your hearts, and so has our party, the PDP. We are conscious of the moral burden imposed on our shoulders by your collective mandate.

We have structures everywhere. We are moving into the APC with all the 226 wards, 21 local government areas, all elected and appointed members and indeed our energy and political machinery to confer benefits on our state, the nation and our people. I therefore call on all our supporters to fit in, register massively in the APC and gear up for a future that is assured’ he said.

Governor Fitiri also noted that he attached importance to ‘long-term stability, development and prosperity of Adamawa State’ hence his decision to leave PDP for APC.

‘Recent events in the polity demand that we take decisive and strategic decisions. There are seasons for political exigencies just as there are seasons for political expedience. We have come this far and built so much with the people that we are ready to move further to align our polity with national politics.

It is on this basis that we have never, as a government, ventured into anything that does not grow our dear state or directly benefit our people. We have always been guided by the triple principles of consultation, legality and impact.

As democrats, we consult with the people. As citizens, we interrogate how every decision we make aligns with extant laws; and as leaders, we weigh the impact of every decision on the state and our people.

The decision to leave the PDP and join the APC was not taken lightly. It was not driven by personal ambition nor by convenience. It was guided by one overriding consideration: the long-term stability, development and prosperity of Adamawa State’ he added.

The governor submitted that after wide consultations with a broad spectrum of Adamawa people, ‘we have resolved to politically align Adamawa State with the All Progressives Congress’.

He also called what has happened ‘political geometry’.

 ‘It was the late Senate President, Dr Chuba Okadigbo, who once said, ‘It takes political sagacity to know political arithmetic.’ In our case, we have been long enough in this game to know the value of our strength and the right steps to take. This isn’t elementary arithmetic; it is political geometry that places every number in its right place.

In ideal democracies, alignments that confer mutual advantages are constant norms. Our alignment with the APC is a testament to strategic adaptability. It is sagacity in action. This is a reciprocally beneficial decision that reflects a pragmatic approach to politics — conferring electoral value while delivering democratic dividends to the people’ he submitted-Team@orientactualmags.com  Do you have any information you wish to share with us? Do you want us to cover your event or programme? Kindly send SMS to 08035023079,  08059100286, 09094171980 or get in touch via orientactualmag@gmail.com.  Thank you