The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) has urged its leaders, spokespersons, members and support groups to accord former Vice President Atiku Abubakar the respect due to him, despite accusing him of disrespecting President Bola Tinubu by addressing him by his first name.
The council said it would not follow what it described as Atiku’s path of disrespect, insisting that its campaign ahead of the 2027 presidential election would focus on issues affecting Nigerians, the achievements of the Tinubu administration and its plans to move the country from reforms to prosperity.
The position was contained in a press statement issued on Monday by the council’s spokesperson, Dele Alake.
The statement followed public reactions to Atiku’s decision to refer to President Tinubu as ‘Bola’, which the APC campaign council described as an act of indiscretion and disregard for the office of the President.
Atiku, who is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), was accused by the council of failing to demonstrate the decorum, decency and respect for constituted authority expected of a former vice president and an aspirant to the nation’s highest political office.
The council said the former vice president had allowed political animosity and what it described as uncontrollable ambition to undermine the statesmanship expected of him since his defeat in the last presidential election.
“Since Alhaji Atiku lost the last Presidential election, he has allowed political animosity and uncontrollable ambition to rob him of the statesmanship that should guide his public conduct and utterances,” the statement said.
It added that Atiku’s conduct had presented a negative example for younger politicians, arguing that he should instead demonstrate the standards of political behaviour expected of someone who had occupied the office of vice president and continued to seek the presidency.
However, the APC PCC said its disagreement with Atiku’s conduct would not translate into a withdrawal of the courtesies due to him as a former vice president and presidential candidate.
“Without any regard to his personal choice to disrespect the office he is aspiring to occupy, the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council has implored all party leaders, spokespersons, party members and support groups to accord all the respect, courtesies and regard due to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as former Vice President of Nigeria and a Presidential candidate,” the statement said.
The council described the APC as a party committed to progressive ideals and African traditional values of respect, adding that it would not adopt the approach it attributed to the ADC presidential candidate.
“As a party grounded in progressive ideals and African traditional values of respect, our campaign council will not follow Alhaji Atiku’s path,” Alake said.
The campaign council further stated that its focus would remain on presenting the policies, programmes and achievements of the Tinubu administration to Nigerians as the President seeks a second-term mandate in 2027.
It said the campaign would emphasise how the administration intended to translate its ongoing reforms into improved prosperity for Nigerians, rather than engage in personal exchanges with political opponents.
The statement signals the APC PCC’s intention to frame its campaign around the Tinubu administration’s record and policy agenda while urging its members to maintain decorum in their engagements with opposition figures.
