‘Return home and face your traditional duties’ — Kwankwaso tells Atiku

Vice-presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has urged former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to withdraw from frontline national politics and devote more attention to his traditional responsibilities in Adamawa State.

Kwankwaso made the remarks at his Abuja residence during a meeting with members of the Fulani Farmers Association, according to a video shared on X on Wednesday.

Referring to Atiku as the Waziri of Adamawa, Kwankwaso said people from the state should persuade him to return home.

“Tell the Waziri of Adamawa, Atiku Abubakar, in Fulfulde, to return to his hometown and give proper attention to his chieftaincy responsibilities, considering his age and physical condition. We promise that we will take care of him,” Kwankwaso said.

He also questioned whether Atiku remained suited to govern Nigeria at this stage of the country’s development.

“The Nigeria of today is no longer the kind of country that is suitable for him to rule. Nigeria was better suited for him about 30 years ago, especially in 1993,” he said.

Kwankwaso recalled the Social Democratic Party presidential convention in Jos in 1993, when Atiku contested against Moshood Abiola and Babagana Kingibe.

“When we went to Jos at that time, I was the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, and we voted for him,” Kwankwaso said.

Atiku finished third in the first ballot with 2,066 votes before withdrawing as negotiations within the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua political bloc shifted support towards Abiola, who eventually emerged as the SDP candidate.

Kwankwaso’s remarks amount to a direct political broadside against one of Nigeria’s most persistent presidential contenders as alignments deepen ahead of the 2027 election.

What to Know:

Kwankwaso’s reference to 1993 reaches back to one of the earliest stages of Atiku’s long presidential ambition. Atiku later served as Vice-President under President Olusegun Obasanjo from 1999 to 2007 and subsequently contested for the presidency several times, including as PDP candidate in 2019 and 2023. In 2017, he was elevated from Turaki to Waziri of Adamawa, a senior traditional title. Questions over his traditional standing resurfaced in 2025 after reforms to Adamawa’s traditional councils. Kwankwaso’s latest remarks therefore combine criticism of Atiku’s age and political relevance with a reminder of a rivalry stretching back more than three decades.