How Tinubu Helped Atiku To Contest For Presidency – Yari

The Director-General of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari, has disclosed that President Bola Tinubu played a pivotal role in enabling former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to contest the presidency in 2007.

Speaking to party faithful during an APC presidential rally in Dutse, Jigawa State, on Tuesday, Yari challenged northern political figures opposing the president to demonstrate a similar track record of cross-regional political empowerment.

“I challenge all those contesting for the presidency from the north to show just one person they supported to become even a councillor in the southern part of the country,” Yari stated, noting that Atiku is currently pursuing the 2027 presidency under the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

The former Zamfara State governor detailed how Tinubu consistently backed northern statesmen in achieving national leadership ambitions, citing his strategic support for the late President Muhammadu Buhari, Atiku Abubakar, and current National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu during previous electoral cycles.

“Tinubu supported the late Muhammadu Buhari to become president of Nigeria. He also helped Atiku Abubakar and Nuhu Ribadu to contest for the presidency,” Yari noted, emphasizing that the president’s developmental interventions across the north demonstrate his long-standing commitment to the region.

“As northerners familiar with the region and its needs, we could attest to the support Tinubu had given the area,” Yari said.

Yari expressed confidence that northern voters would back Tinubu in 2027, citing massive rally turnouts in Kaduna and Jigawa. Referring to assurances by Governor Umar Namadi that Jigawa would deliver two million votes for Tinubu, Yari urged residents: “People of Jigawa, you have heard what your governor said. It is now your turn to ensure that you help him fulfil that promise.”

Also addressing the rally, Vice-President Kashim Shettima expressed strong confidence in the party’s electoral prospects in Jigawa State, claiming that prominent political figures across party lines—including former Governor Sule Lamido, Ali Sa’adu Birnin Kudu, Sen. Ibrahim Turaki, and Defense Minister Mohammed Badaru—are aligned with President Tinubu’s administration.

“Ali Sa’adu Birnin Kudu is with Tinubu, Sen. Ibrahim Turaki is with Tinubu, Mohammed Badaru is with Tinubu, even my friend Sule Lamido is ours,” Shettima declared, calling on residents to vote for Tinubu for a second term.

During the visit, President Tinubu remotely commissioned four major infrastructural and agricultural initiatives executed by Governor Umar Namadi’s administration within the Dutse metropolis:

• Renewed Hope Technical Services: Dedicated vocational and industrial technology facility.
• Bola Ahmed Tinubu Multipurpose Skill Acquisition Centre: Youth empowerment hub designed for capacity building.
• Agricultural Mechanization Fleet: Induction of 400 newly acquired tractors, 60 combine harvesters, and specialized farming equipment.
• Garu Road Infrastructure: Newly dualized municipal road network within Dutse.

Governor Namadi explained that the four projects were selected for commissioning due to their proximity in the metropolis: “We have many more projects, but we know the president’s time is quite brief. We therefore selected these projects because they are within the metropolis and close to one another.”