The African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has dismissed age concerns ahead of the 2027 presidential election, declaring himself fit and healthy while taking a swipe at President Bola Tinubu’s age.
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In an interview with BBC Hausa, Atiku was asked whether his age would affect his ability to provide effective leadership if elected in 2027, given that he would be “almost or nearly 80 years old” by then .
His response was swift and sharp: “You went and voted for someone who is 80, I mean 90 years old. How old is President Bola, 90?”
When the interviewer corrected him, pointing out that Tinubu was not yet 80, Atiku fired back: “Do I look to you like someone who has reached 80 years of age?”
Reacting to Atiku’s age jibe at President Tinubu, Reno Omokri, Ambassador-designate to Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, posted a throwback picture of Tinubu and journalist Dele Momodu taken in London in 1996.
Omokri argued that if Atiku is claiming Tinubu is 90, then Momodu — who appears alongside the President in the photo — must be in his eighties .
“This is a photo of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Dele Momodu taken in London in 1996. If Asiwaju is indeed 90 years old, as recently alleged, then Dele Momodu must be in his eighties,” Omokri wrote .
He challenged Nigerians to examine the photo objectively:
“Look at the photo yourself. I have not altered it in any way. Dele Momodu is alive to testify to the authenticity of this photograph and the date and place where it was taken .”
Omokri further questioned: “Does His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, look like a 60-year-old in this photo?”
He added: “If Asiwaju is indeed 90 years of age, then he would have been 60 when this photo was taken exactly 30 years ago. I urge objective Nigerians and citizens of the world to again look at this photo. Does the gentleman on the right look 60? Does he even look 50?”
Omokri Reminds Dele Momodu of Tinubu’s Past Kindness
Omokri also took a swipe at Dele Momodu, reminding him of Tinubu’s past generosity during his exile from the Abacha regime .
“I remind Dele Momodu that, by his own admission, Asiwaju was good to him when he was in exile from the Abacha regime. Mr Momodu is free to support whichever candidate he chooses. But will it be morally acceptable for Dele Momodu to watch idly by as a man who was once his benefactor, and who he once referred to as his friend, is being accused of being a nonagenarian suffering from ill health?” Omokri asked .
On the opposition front, Atiku dismissed claims that he had become an obstacle to the opposition coalition .
“That is a baseless accusation levelled against me. I was actually the one who initiated the coalition. Nobody else. I, Atiku Abubakar, started it,” he said .
He added that Peter Obi and his running mate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, are the two major opposition figures who had left the coalition .
“It was just Kwankwaso… he was with us at first, then he left. Yes, and also Peter Obi. It’s just them, but the rest of us are still here continuing our work,” Atiku said .
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