A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bode George, has advised the party's presidential flag-bearer in the 2023 general elections, Atiku Abubakar, to quit his quest for the presidency in 2027.
George, a former Deputy National Chairman of the PDP, gave the advice during a press briefing at his Lugard office in Lagos on Wednesday, January 31, 2024.
He also called on President Bola Tinubu to summon retired military officers for a meeting to devise solutions to the current security challenges in the country.
On January 3, 2024, the spokesman for the now-dissolved Presidential Campaign Organisation of the PDP, Daniel Bwala, revealed that Atiku will have another go at the presidency come 2027.
By the time Nigerians go to the polls for the next presidential election, the former Vice President would be 81 years old. In the view of elder statesman, the age factor will be a big disadvantage for the PDP candidate in 2027.
Rather than expending his energy to contest the next election, the PDP chieftain suggests that Atiku should be the big uncle in the room to mentor the younger ones.
He advised the PDP to be firm about zoning the presidency of 2027 to the South, insisting that the North had enjoyed its eight uninterrupted years.
Addressing those championing the idea of a Mega Party in the PDP, George cautioned them to stop, maintaining that the PDP would not be part of any mega party.
“No other party is as entrenched and national in all concepts than the PDP. In 2027, I can’t tell anybody not to contest, but our party must be definitive that the Presidency must remain in the South since the North has finished its eight years,” he noted.
The elder statesman described as “horrendous and heart-rending” the current security situation in the country and called on Tinubu to wake up to his responsibilities.
George, however, said he feels pity for the President for the “deluge of crises” before him. He also asked Tinubu to implement the 2014 National Confab report commissioned by former President Goodluck Jonathan.
“We are failing on security, and I want to call on the President to invite all elders to come for a discussion. The issue of insecurity has become a national calamity.
“The President has to wake up. I pity him because he has this deluge of crises. Unfortunately, he cannot complain because it is the same party that is in power,” he added.