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Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the upcoming 2027 elections, Atiku Abubakar, has clarified his decision to skip the recent signing ceremony of the National Peace Accord, criticizing the ruling party’s history of non-participation.
Atiku made these remarks during a visit to his Abuja residence by the Council of the Wise from the Savannah Centre for Democracy, Diplomacy and Development, headed by former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, as part of stakeholder engagements leading up to the 2027 polls.
The delegation visited the opposition figure to encourage all presidential contenders to champion peaceful, credible, and issue-driven political campaigns.
The discussion centered on the National Peace Accord, which was hosted in Abuja on August 18 by the National Peace Committee alongside the Kukah Centre to bind political platforms and candidates to peaceful electoral conduct.
While President Bola Tinubu was represented at the event by Secretary to the Government of the Federation George Akume, and figures like Peter Obi, Omoyele Sowore, and Adewole Adebayo participated, Atiku and his party were conspicuously absent.
Explaining his absence to the Ariwoola-led delegation, Atiku stated that his past experiences with the peace pact left him disillusioned, claiming that opposition groups consistently carried the burden of compliance while the ruling establishment opted out.
The former vice president asserted that safeguarding peaceful and transparent elections goes beyond the obligations of politicians alone, emphasizing that all arms of government carry a heavy duty in the process.
Reflecting on his past legal contests with former President Olusegun Obasanjo between 1999 and 2007, he noted that he successfully challenged presidential actions in court without requiring personal contact with judges, though he expressed concern that the current judicial landscape has evolved.
Atiku affirmed his openness to collaborating with the Council of the Wise while emphasizing the absolute necessity of a level playing field for the 2027 electoral contest.
He further encouraged the visiting council to maintain candid and uncompromising dialogues with political actors regardless of media presence.
Earlier during the visit, Justice Ariwoola congratulated Atiku on securing the ADC presidential ticket and appealed for a campaign devoid of hate speech, inflammatory rhetoric, or actions that could trigger public unrest.
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