Keyamo Mocks Atiku Ahead of Kaduna Rally, Says ADC Candidate Is No Buhari

Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Festus Keyamo has taken aim at former Vice President Atiku Abubakar ahead of the APC’s presidential campaign rally in Kaduna, describing him as a “butterfly that thinks it is a bird.”

Keyamo made the remark while criticising what he termed Atiku’s “blistering online attack against the APC (All Progressives Congress), particularly in the North.”

The APC is expected to officially launch its presidential campaign in Kaduna on Saturday.

In a statement, Keyamo claimed that Atiku, who is contesting the 2027 presidential election under the African Democratic Congress (ADC), was counting on Northern votes because he had failed to establish a strong political presence in Southern Nigeria.

The minister alleged that Atiku had adopted a “common but cheap tactic” of recording people tearing down posters of President Bola Tinubu and circulating the footage online.

Keyamo also accused the opposition of attempting to portray the President’s Northern support as a product of financial inducements rather than genuine backing.

“The other tactic is to disseminate disinformation claiming that any support the President is seen to receive in the North is procured only through the massive deployment of financial resources.

“Hence the fake letter alleging a N2.3 trillion deployment for the Kaduna rally. The intention is to generate a hoopla that will create a groundswell of public opinion that President Tinubu has been ‘massively rejected’ in the North,” he stated.

Keyamo maintained that the South should be allowed to complete eight years in the presidency, considering the country’s current political circumstances.

He further cited the 2023 election results, asserting that Atiku lost in the Middle Belt and every Southern state except Osun State.

On the prospects for the 2027 election, the minister argued that the APC’s Northern political structures were supporting Tinubu, making it increasingly difficult for Atiku to rely on the region for victory.

Keyamo said Atiku’s anticipated Northern voting advantage was diminishing and described his alleged campaign tactics as signs of desperation.

He argued that even if Atiku secured victories in some Northern areas, the President could still win nationally if Tinubu performed strongly in the Middle Belt and Southern states.

“He knows that even if he wins in some parts of the North and the President comes a close second, the election is as good as over, because those differences would be wiped out by his heavy defeat in the Middle Belt and the South,” Keyamo said.

The minister also dismissed comparisons between Atiku and former President Muhammadu Buhari, arguing that Atiku should not expect to replicate Buhari’s performance in the North during the 2015 election.

“Atiku Abubakar thinks he is the Buhari of 2015, who swept the Northern votes. He thinks that was a display of ethnic support. He fails to realise that his past puts him poles apart from a Muhammadu Buhari,” Keyamo said.

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