Presidency 2023: Atiku exposes Tinubu at PDP meeting

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar may have exposed the national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, at a meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Abuja, revealing the APC leader’s ambition many years ago. However, Atiku narrated the experience both politicians had together in the past to substantiate his unadulterated belief in zoning and power rotation in the country.

Atiku at meeting with members of the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) in Abuja asserted his belief in zoning, noting that he has paid his dues in the issue of zoning in the PDP. The former Vice President also noted that it is unfair for any part of the country to make claims of exclusion, saying that the PDP has always ensure inclusiveness in all its activities.

Atiku highlighting the power rotation and zoning scheme in the 16 years of the PDP, appealed to PDP leaders not to allow the APC to stampede the party on the issue of zoning.

Atiku narrated that while he was Vice President in the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo – 1999 to 2007, he had agreement with Tinubu to contest the 2007 presidential election on the platform of the Action Congress (AC), revealing that Tinubu demanded to be his vice president but he said no, nominated somebody from the southeast.

Atiku narrated: “the southeast said they have not been given a chance, I protested against the violation of the zoning policy in 2007, and together with my friend Bola (Tinubu) we set up Action Congress (AC).

“We went to Lagos, he gave me ticket but said that the condition of handing me the ticket was that I should make him vice president, I said no; I’m not going to make you Vice President; instead, I nominated Senator Ben Obi.”

The former vice president maintained that he never worked against zoning of the presidential ticket to the South in the party.

Atiku further highlighted: “In the party, we invented and formulated this zoning policy simply because we wanted every part of this country to have a sense of belonging and I personally have paid my dues on the issue of zoning.

“Many of you were members of our government when all the PDP governors came in 2003 and said I should run and I said no. We have agreed that power should remain in the South-West, why should I?

“Some of those governors that supported me, some of them went to jail, some of them were kicked out of their offices; we made sure that we kept the policy. “Therefore, you cannot come and try to imply that the PDP has not been following the zoning policy.

“The many years of PDP government eight years and six years all of them were from the South. So, we should not be stampeded by the opposition party. They have a moral obligation which is inescapable.”

The former vice president also said that He “there is absolutely no reason why people from the southern region of the country should say that there is a deliberate attempt to exclude them in political participation or power-sharing.

“I thought I should disabuse your mind and of course, as an enlightened political class, I don’t think there’s any deliberate policy to exclude anybody in this country.”

Meanwhile, Tinubu has remained a front line presidential aspirant in the APC for the 2023 general elections. Tinubu had declared that the 2023 presidential race is a life ambition.