Former Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has described reports about stepping aside from contesting in the 2027 election and retiring from active politics as false.
Naija News reports that Atiku, in a statement on Monday, through his Media Adviser, Paul Ibe, asserted that the reports are efforts by anti-democratic elements to create confusion and dampen the momentum of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Atiku further dismissed the insinuation of holding any meeting with ADC stakeholders at the national level, where the decision to step aside from active politics was made.
The former Vice President further accused the government and its agents of sponsoring the desperate narrative and urged the public to disregard the fake news.
The statement read, “We wish to state, for the record, that information circulating on social media about a purported meeting of His Excellency, Atiku Abubakar, with stakeholders of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), in which the former Vice President allegedly decided to “step aside and retire from active politics,” is entirely false and deliberately misleading.
“The Waziri Adamawa has not in recent times held any such meeting with ADC stakeholders at the national level. The only recent engagement he had was with stakeholders of the ADC in Adamawa State last Thursday.
“An issue as fundamental and consequential as exiting active politics cannot, and would never, be communicated through rumours, faceless sources, or third-party fabrication. Such a decision, if ever taken, would be formally conveyed through the Atiku Media Office.
“This latest falsehood bears all the hallmarks of a coordinated disinformation campaign designed to create confusion, dampen momentum, and mislead the Nigerian public.
“Only the government and its agents could have sponsored this desperate narrative out of fear of what is coming.
“We state without equivocation that this mischief is being driven by anti-democratic elements who are deeply unsettled by the growing national consensus to rescue Nigeria from the failures of the current administration.
“We therefore urge supporters of Atiku Abubakar, members of the ADC, and all well-meaning Nigerians to disregard this fake news in its entirety and remain focused on the collective effort to reclaim and rebuild our nation.”
-Source: NaijaNews
