2023 presidential race: Let youths compete with elders – Atiku

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar on Saturday appealed to the electorate not to consider old-age as a reason to disqualify him for the 2023 Presidential election, saying Nigerians should only support the youths to compete with the elders.

Atiku, who clocked 75 years old last year November, made the statement against the backdrop of reported public outcry among Nigerian electorate not to vote for old persons as presidential candidates in the 2023 general election, going by the old age-related health issues that allegedly hold back President Muhammadu Buhari from performing effectively.

Speaking in Abeokuta on Saturday, after a closed-door meeting with Obasanjo at the Hilton Towers of Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), the Waziri Adamawa, said he had only come to see his boss.

Although Atiku didn’t disclose why he was in Abeokuta to see Obasanjo as he is yet to declare his ambition for presidential race, he is however, optimistic that he will get the presidential ticket of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) when the time comes.

When asked about why he was in Abeokuta to see Obasanjo and his political ambition in 2023, Atiku said: “I came to see my boss. I came to meet my boss. We will let you know when I declare, we will give a formal announcement.”

Read also: Atiku Abubakar: Nigeria’s tenacious presidential candidate

When he was queried on how optimistic he is to secure PDP presidential ticket going by some younger presidential aspirants in the opposition party already fighting for same political seat, Atiku responded with a question, “Have I ever failed to get the ticket?”

He however, requested that both the old and the young be allowed to contest side-by-side in the 2023 general election, as he requested, “Let the youth compete with the elders. It is competition. It is democracy.”

BusinessDay reports that the Waziri of Adamawa later proceeded to the Palace of Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo in Ake, Abeokuta where he recalled his stint in Ogun State as a trained Customs Officer in the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).