Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has responded to comments by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, who claimed that the opposition coalition would struggle to secure up to 10 per cent of votes in Rivers State during the 2027 presidential election.
Wike reportedly made the remark on Saturday at a luncheon organised for candidates of the Rainbow Coalition in Rivers State, where he predicted that neither Atiku nor the ADC would make a significant electoral impact in the state.
Reacting in a statement issued on Monday through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the people of Rivers State were politically aware and capable of making independent decisions about their future.
He maintained that Rivers voters could not be regarded as the political property of any individual, stressing that they would cast their ballots based on the challenges facing the country and the future they envision for themselves and their families.
“The votes of Rivers people are not your property. The people of Rivers State are not political slaves; they are intelligent, independent-minded Nigerians who will make their choices based on the realities confronting them and the future they desire for their children,” the statement read.
The former vice president further argued that no politician, regardless of influence or access to state power, could determine how an entire state would vote.
Atiku also suggested that Wike’s comments reflected growing anxiety within the camp of President Bola Tinubu over the emergence of a united opposition coalition under the ADC ahead of the 2027 elections.
According to him, Nigerians are more concerned about economic hardship, rising living costs and insecurity than political predictions by public office holders.
The latest exchange adds to the long-running political rivalry between Atiku and Wike as parties and coalitions intensify preparations for the 2027 general elections.
