Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has asserted that he remains the most politically influential figure in Northern Nigeria, stating that no current or emerging leader in the region matches his electoral strength.
Speaking during an interview on Arise News on Wednesday evening, Atiku assessed the standing of prominent northern politicians, including Rabiu Kwankwaso, Aminu Tambuwal, and Nasir el-Rufai.
He maintained that, despite their individual followings, none commands as broad a voter base across the North as he does.
“Can you tell who is a current leader in the North who has more votes than I have?” Atiku said. “Talking of leaders like Tambuwal, Kwankwaso, El-Rufai and also the emerging political leaders, none of them have got that northern vote as much as I’ve got.”
The former vice president also downplayed Kwankwaso’s political influence, describing it as largely limited to Kano State. He added that even within the state, political loyalty is no longer unified.
“Kwankwaso’s popularity is restricted to only Kano State. Kano is even now split between him and Governor Abba Yusuf,” he said, referring to Abba Yusuf.
Atiku’s remarks come amid ongoing political realignments within the African Democratic Congress and broader opposition efforts ahead of future elections.
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