Kaduna Presidential Rally: Atiku Is A Butterfly That Thinks It Is A Bird – Keyamo

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has accused the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, of being jittery over the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign rally in Kaduna State.

Keyamo made the allegation in a post on his official X account on Saturday, claiming that Atiku was worried about President Bola Tinubu’s growing political strength in Northern Nigeria ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

In a statement titled: “Why Atiku Abubakar Is Particularly Jittery About The Kaduna Flag-Off,” Keyamo alleged that the former vice-president had launched online attacks against the APC in an attempt to undermine support for Tinubu in the region.

He accused Atiku’s camp of staging videos showing individuals tearing down the President’s campaign posters and circulating what he described as disinformation about the financial resources deployed for the Kaduna rally.

Keyamo specifically referenced an alleged letter claiming that N2.3 trillion had been earmarked for the rally, describing it as fake.

According to him, the alleged tactics were intended to create the impression that Tinubu had been rejected by voters in Northern Nigeria.

“The intention is to generate a hoopla that will create a groundswell of public opinion that President Tinubu has been “massively rejected” in the North,” he said.

The minister argued that Atiku was relying heavily on Northern votes to secure victory in the 2027 presidential election, adding that the former vice-president had limited prospects of gaining significant support in the South.

Keyamo further claimed that Atiku’s electoral calculations were being undermined by the APC’s political structures in the North.

“However, with the solid APC structures in the North backing the President, Atiku Abubakar has seen that his demographic calculation for the 2027 elections regarding northern votes is dissolving like Andrews Liver Salts in water,” he said.

He also argued that Atiku’s expected performance in parts of the North would not be sufficient to guarantee victory if Tinubu secured substantial support in the Middle Belt and Southern states.

Keyamo cited the 2023 presidential election, claiming that Atiku lost across all North-Central states and all Southern states except Osun State.

The minister also compared Atiku’s political calculations with those of former President Muhammadu Buhari, who secured substantial Northern support during the 2015 presidential election.

He said Atiku had failed to recognise the differences between his political standing and Buhari’s, alleging that corruption-related concerns would affect the former vice-president’s electoral prospects.

“Atiku Abubakar thinks he is the Buhari of 2015, who swept the Northern votes. He thinks that was a display of ethnic support. He fails to realise that his corruption-laden past puts him poles apart from a Muhammadu Buhari, and that Northerners do not tolerate such persons with the putrid smell of corruption.

“Atiku Abubakar is a butterfly that thinks it is a bird,” Keyamo said.

The APC presidential campaign rally is holding today, Saturday, October 24, 2026, at Kaduna Township Stadium in Kaduna State. It marks the official flag-off of President Bola Tinubu’s campaign for re-election in the 2027 presidential election.