Buhari too ‘power-drunk’ to leave peacefully in 2019- Atiku

Former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, has expressed his fears that current president, Muhammadu Buhari, is too ‘power-drunk’ and might find it hard to leave power without a fight after the 2019 presidential election.

Atiku who made this assertion on Monday, said Buhari, as a retired military general, will not leave power without a fight, unlike his predecessor.

He said unlike then-president, Goodluck Jonathan, who peacefully conceded defeat to Buhari after the 2015 presidential election, he’s very concerned about Buhari doing the same.

He said, “We are dealing now with a retired general (Buhari), very uncompromising, also power-drunk who will not be ready to leave power without a fight – or at least those are some of my fears for the current elections.”

Atiku further described Jonathan as “much more level-headed” and a “peaceful, very patriotic Nigerian” in contrast to Buhari who was military Head of State between 1983 and 1985.

While he’s one of the favourites to win the presidential ticket of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku will have to defeat a lot of influential politicians who have also set their eyes on the prize.

He faces competition in Senate President, Bukola Saraki, Sokoto State governor, Aminu Tambuwal, Gombe State governor, Ibrahim Dankwambo, and former governors, Sule Lamido, Attahiru Bafarawa, Jonah Jang, Ahmed Makarfi, as well as Rabiu Kwankwaso.

To avoid any crisis after the party’s primary election, PDP has announced that all presidential aspirants in the party must sign an undertaking which is expected to compel them to accept and back the winner instead of causing an internal rift.