Kaduna APC asks Atiku to quit 2027 race and back Tinubu
- Kaduna APC spokesman Mohammed Sani Haruna urged Atiku Abubakar to withdraw from the 2027 presidential race and back President Tinubu.
- Haruna said Saturday's Kaduna rally showed the North now backs Tinubu, claiming over one million attended.
- He dismissed claims that the crowd was AI-generated or paid, saying supporters queued from 4am.
The Kaduna State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has asked former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to drop his 2027 presidential ambition and throw his weight behind President Bola Tinubu.
The party's state publicity secretary, Mohammed Sani Haruna, made the call at a press briefing in Kaduna on Monday, two days after the APC held a presidential campaign flag-off rally in the city on Saturday, 24 October 2026.
Haruna said the turnout at the rally showed that the North, long seen as Atiku's strongest base, has now lined up behind the President. He argued that Atiku can no longer count on northern votes to carry a presidential bid.
"I am categorically calling on him to withdraw from the race. Already, the odds are against him," Haruna said.
He urged the former vice-president to work with Tinubu in the interest of national unity, recalling that Tinubu gave Atiku a platform to contest the presidency in 2011. "One good turn deserves another," he said.
Haruna also suggested that Atiku, who is approaching 80, risks further political embarrassment if he runs again and loses.
Crowd claims and pushback
The APC spokesman said more than one million people attended Saturday's rally, and that Kaduna can deliver at least two million votes for Tinubu in 2027 — a target he said Governor Uba Sani had set. He did not provide independently verifiable figures for the crowd estimate.
Asked about videos circulating on social media suggesting the crowd footage was generated with Artificial Intelligence and that attendees were paid, Haruna dismissed the claims as baseless.
"People slept over. People queued as early as 4am to gain access to the stadium. You cannot buy that sentiment," he said.
He accused Atiku and other opposition figures of leaning on ethnic, religious and regional sentiments to court northern voters, rather than pointing to what they had delivered for the region.
Haruna also defended the administration's economic reforms, saying food prices are gradually coming down and that insecurity is being tackled. He cited ongoing railway construction from Kaduna towards Kano and said federal universities have not gone on strike over industrial disputes under Tinubu.
He thanked Governor Uba Sani for organising the rally and for the party's mobilisation effort in the state.
What happens next
The call is political pressure from one state chapter of the ruling party, not a change on any ballot. How the North's voters actually line up will only be tested at the 2027 general election.
