Be A Statesman, Not Serial Candidate, Group Tells Atiku

The Concerned Nigerians for Democratic Sustainability (CNCDS) has urged former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to embrace statesmanship rather than pursue what it described as another “serial presidential candidacy” ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The group said Nigeria had reached a critical democratic moment where difficult conversations about leadership transition, generational renewal, and the future of opposition politics must be openly addressed.

In a statement issued by the coordinator of CNCDS, Ambassador Mukhtar Garba, the organisation argued that Atiku Abubakar must decide whether he wants to be remembered as a statesman who helped rebuild Nigeria’s democracy or as a perennial presidential aspirant whose repeated ambitions have weakened opposition coalitions.

According to the group, Atiku’s reported preparation for what could become his seventh presidential contest reflects a broader problem within Nigeria’s political system, where older political figures continue to dominate the national space at the expense of younger leadership.

He said: “At 79 years old and reportedly preparing for what would be his seventh presidential contest, Atiku represents not merely an individual ambition but a troubling symbol of Nigeria’s refusal to allow political transition, institutional growth, and leadership succession within the opposition space.

“While every Nigerian has a constitutional right to seek office, no democracy can sustainably develop when the same political figures dominate the national stage for decades, repeatedly placing personal aspiration above coalition stability, party cohesion, and the emergence of younger leadership.

“The CNCDS is deeply disturbed that each electoral cycle involving Atiku Abubakar has followed a familiar and destructive pattern that opposition coalitions emerge with hope and momentum; consultations begin around national rescue and democratic alternatives; then internal tensions, dominance struggles, personality clashes, and fragmentation follow closely behind his presidential calculations.

“This pattern did not begin today. Nigerians witnessed it within the PDP before the 2023 elections, where unresolved ambition and internal divisions fatally weakened the opposition’s ability to present a united challenge. Rather than learning from that costly failure, the same cycle is once again threatening coalition efforts ahead of 2027.

“At a period when Nigerians are enduring severe economic hardship, rising insecurity, unemployment, inflation, mass poverty, and collapsing public confidence in governance, the opposition should be focused on unity, strategic coordination, and credible national alternatives, not another endless debate around one man’s lifelong presidential pursuit.

“The African Democratic Congress (ADC) and similar coalition efforts were expected to become broad national platforms capable of mobilising Nigerians across ethnic, religious, and generational lines.”

The organisation stressed that Nigeria urgently requires generational political renewal, arguing that millions of young Nigerians who were not yet born when Atiku first contested for power are now facing unemployment, insecurity, and political disillusionment.

Garba warned that continued domination of the political space by older politicians risks alienating younger citizens and delaying the emergence of fresh leadership with modern ideas.

He said that Atiku is uniquely positioned to play a more historic role as a mentor, consensus builder, and elder statesman capable of supporting younger leaders rather than continuously contesting for office himself.

Garba added, “The CNCDS believes Atiku Abubakar is uniquely positioned at this stage of his life and political journey to play a historic fatherly role in Nigeria’s democratic evolution, as a mentor, bridge-builder, consensus mobiliser, and elder statesman capable of supporting younger leaders rather than perpetually overshadowing them.

“History is kinder to leaders who know when to guide from the front and when to step aside for the next generation. Nigeria does not merely need another candidate. Nigeria needs democratic renewal, institutional stability, and a new political culture driven by ideas, competence, inclusion, sacrifice, and national purpose.

“We therefore urge opposition stakeholders, particularly within Northern Nigeria, to resist the dangerous culture of personality politics and instead prioritise coalition-building, strategic discipline, and generational transition ahead of the 2027 elections.

“The future of over 200 million Nigerians cannot continue to revolve around the unending ambition of a shrinking political class while the nation sinks deeper into hardship and instability. This is the time for statesmanship. Not another serial candidacy.”