African Democratic Congress (ADC) chieftain and veteran journalist, Dele Momodu, has described former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as the most experienced among the leading political figures featuring prominently in Nigeria’s 2027 presidential contest.
Momodu made the assessment on Wednesday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State, where he compared the political records of Atiku, President Bola Tinubu and former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi.
According to him, Atiku’s experience at the federal level, particularly his eight years as vice-president under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, gives him a different political profile from Obi and Tinubu.
“If you look at the antecedents of the three major candidates and the two major opposition candidates, between Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, you will see that Atiku is the most experienced. He has managed our country, Nigeria, at the highest level, the presidency, and his impact is still felt and spoken about till today,” Momodu said.
He traced Atiku’s political experience to the aborted Third Republic, recalling that the former vice-president contested the 1992 Social Democratic Party (SDP) presidential primary against the late Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola before stepping down for him.
Momodu said Atiku’s decision to accept the outcome without creating a political crisis demonstrated his democratic credentials.
“He is the only one who started from around 1992, contested the SDP primary against M.K.O. Abiola and after he stepped down for M.K.O. Abiola, Abiola became victorious in their party, SDP, and eventually went on to win the presidential race on June 12, 1993,” he said.
Atiku later became a founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and served as vice-president from 1999 to 2007 after winning the 1999 presidential election alongside Obasanjo.
During his vice-presidential tenure, he also chaired the National Council on Privatisation.
Momodu argued that this national executive experience distinguished Atiku from Obi, whose political career was largely built around his tenure as governor of Anambra State.
“Of course, Peter Obi has tried his best. His best was demonstrated in Anambra State in the southeast of Nigeria, while Atiku’s best is at the level of vice president, controlling, managing the economy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” he said.
Obi served two terms as Anambra governor between 2006 and 2014 before becoming a major opposition figure and the Labour Party’s presidential candidate in 2023.
Momodu also questioned the extent to which Tinubu’s political experience before becoming president could be compared with Atiku’s federal executive experience.
Tinubu was elected senator for Lagos West during the Third Republic and later served as Lagos State governor from 1999 to 2007.
He subsequently became a major figure in opposition politics and was instrumental in the formation of the All Progressives Congress (APC), which won federal power in 2015.
“What I’m trying to say is that Tinubu’s experience was limited to Lagos, and that is why when he became president, he thought Nigeria was Lagos. And he has found out now that Nigeria is not Lagos,” Momodu said.
He further rejected the argument that Tinubu’s experience as president automatically placed him ahead of Atiku in terms of political exposure, pointing instead to the economic difficulties Nigerians have experienced under the current administration.
“Well, we are yet to see that prosperity, and if yesterday would determine today and tomorrow, it is obvious that Tinubu should retire now and let someone else do it,” he said.
Momodu’s comments come as opposition parties and political figures position themselves ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Atiku is currently the presidential candidate of the ADC, while Obi is running for the presidential race under the National Democratic Party (NDC).
