A call for generational change in Nigeria’s political landscape has emerged from the camp of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), as the party’s national youth leader, Eze-Onyebuchi Chukwu, urged former vice-president Atiku Abubakar to shelve his presidential ambition for 2027 and instead back a competent youth candidate.
In a statement made available on Friday, Chukwu insisted that Nigeria could no longer afford to be stuck in the cycle of recycled leadership and urged Atiku to either back a younger aspirant or allow Tinubu to finish a second term, if it’s tied to a firm promise to hand over power to a young Nigerian by 2031.
“Rather than aspiring to run again in 2027, Atiku should rally his political allies to support a young, credible Nigerian,” Chukwu said. “It’s time to return power to the youths.”
The youth leader emphasized that continuing to sideline young Nigerians in matters of national leadership would only deepen the country’s crises. According to him, any serious effort toward national transformation must begin with youth inclusion and political succession planning.
Chukwu, who previously supported Atiku during the 2019 elections, said he had invested his time and resources as the FCT convener of the Atikunation movement because he believed the former VP would center youth development in his agenda. “Atiku challenged Goodluck Jonathan in 2015, Muhammadu Buhari in 2019, and Tinubu in 2023,” he noted. “Now he wants to contest again in 2027, is he the only one fit to be president? There are capable young Nigerians who deserve a chance.”
He added that Atiku’s continued attempts at the presidency risk frustrating the political aspirations of a whole generation of young leaders. If Atiku insists on running, Chukwu said it might be politically wiser to let Tinubu complete his tenure, as long as there’s a binding commitment that power would shift to the youth by 2031.
He concluded by saying Nigerian youths are ready to support any candidate, regardless of party affiliation, who makes a public, credible pledge to support a youth presidency in the next political cycle.
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