•Titi Abubakar
Wife of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) Presidential Candidate, Titi Abubakar, has asked Nigerian youths to make her husband their choice in the 2027 presidential election.
She said they would eventually demand that he stays beyond his first term if he gets elected in 2027.
Titi made the appeal at an ADC All Support Groups Town Hall Meeting in Abuja, reports Daily Trust.
She charged youths to take ownership of the political process ahead of the election.
Although Atiku has promised to serve only one term if elected, she said his performance in office would make Nigerians want him to continue.
The intervention by Titi Abubakar adds a new dimension to the unfolding 2027 presidential contest, with the wives of some of the leading contenders increasingly stepping into the campaign arena to make the case for their husbands.
The development became particularly noticeable this week when First Lady Oluremi Tinubu appealed to voters in the South-East to support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s bid for a second term.
She said she wanted to “enjoy Nigeria at old age” and would continue working for the country.
Tinubu’s appeal came during an official engagement in Owerri, Imo State, where she was distributing empowerment items to women.
Her message quickly acquired a political tone as she asked the people of the region to vote for her husband in 2027.
But according to Titi, “By the grace of God, when Atiku comes to this saddle, people will yearn that Atiku should continue and do a second term”.
She added that the first term would also provide an opportunity for Atiku to prepare his deputy to succeed him.
“By then, he would have tutored his deputy; maybe the deputy will take over from him,” she said.
Titi described the former vice president as an experienced politician and philanthropist who, if elected, would not need to learn the business of governance after assuming office.
“Atiku is a sellable material. That is why I am so proud of my husband. Atiku is a philanthropist. Atiku has done it before. Atiku is not going to learn on the job. And Atiku is not a novice,” she said.
She said her husband was seeking the presidency to improve the lives of Nigerians rather than enrich himself.
“Atiku is a man of honour, a man of his word. Atiku is not coming to chop government money. Atiku wants to give back to you people. Atiku wants you people to know what it is all about the government,” she said.
The ADC presidential campaign, she said, would rely heavily on young Nigerians, whom she described as the party’s “foot soldiers” ahead of the election.
Titi said Atiku had also pledged that youths and women would receive 40 per cent of government appointments if he wins the presidency.
She urged the youths to translate their support into grassroots mobilisation, particularly by ensuring that votes cast for the party were protected at polling units.
The former vice president’s wife also warned voters against accepting money from politicians in exchange for their votes, saying such inducements could compromise the future of younger generations.
“ADC doesn’t have that money to give you. Don’t be a sellout. Because these people, they have all our money in their kitties.
“Don’t allow them to come and give you money and you sell your conscience. If you sell your vote, you are selling the vote of your generation yet unborn”, she said.
Titi also launched a broad attack on the state of governance in the country, claiming that the constitution and rule of law had been undermined while the economy was struggling.
“Now, today, we have no constitution. We have no rule of law. Nothing is working. Our economy is in shambles,” she said.
She further questioned the state of the country’s budgeting process and said Nigerians were struggling with the consequences of what she described as poor governance.
“Right from 2023 up to date, there is no budget in Nigeria. And I wonder how people are living. I wonder how people are eating,” she said.
She said Atiku was prepared to reverse the situation and restore confidence in governance.
“Atiku wants to put things right. We want to be like other nations, but here and now we don’t have anything at all. We are not proud of ourselves,” she added.
The town hall, held under the theme, ‘Together We Can Build the Nigeria We Desire,’ focused on grassroots mobilisation, polling-unit coordination, vote protection and greater participation of youths, women and support groups in the ADC’s 2027 campaign.
