Former Vice President and 2027 presidential hopeful, Atiku Abubakar, has assured that the interest of the Yoruba people would “occupy a topmost place” in his administration if elected President.
Atiku made the pledge in a statement issued on Thursday in Abuja by his media consultant, Kola Johnson, stressing that fears of Hausa/Fulani domination under his leadership were “absolutely unfounded.”
“The entire Yoruba stock is my larger extended family and in-laws,” Atiku stated. “This is why the Yoruba, whether individually or collectively, have always occupied a special place in my heart.”
He promised that the South-West would be central to his policymaking if elected President in 2027. “The interest of the Yorubas will always occupy a topmost place in my policymaking and governance if, by the special Grace of Allah, I am lucky to be president,” he added.
Citing his marriage to Titi, an Ijesha-born Yoruba woman, in the 1970s, Atiku highlighted his deep-rooted connection to the South-West. “In case you don’t know or have forgotten, I was married to my first wife, Titi, a Yoruba woman, in the 70s, and we have four Yoruba children together,” he said.
The former vice president described Titi as his “Jewel of Inestimable Value” and revealed that his children sometimes call him “Baba Rere,” meaning “good father.”
He insisted that his marital and personal ties to the Yoruba, coupled with his history of working with diverse groups, prove that he is “naturally a highly detribalised person” and that fears of ethnic domination under his administration are misplaced.
Atiku, who came second in the 2023 presidential election won by President Bola Tinubu, is expected to challenge the incumbent again in the 2027 poll.
