Former Vice President and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has revisited the contentious issue of zoning and power rotation in Nigeria, arguing that prevailing narratives about regional dominance in leadership do not accurately reflect the country’s democratic history.
Atiku made the remarks during an interview on Arise News, where he responded to questions about his possible participation in the 2027 presidential election and whether it aligns with the principle of North-South power rotation.
Addressing concerns that his ambition could contradict zoning expectations, Atiku dismissed claims that there is a binding national agreement enforcing rotational presidency across all political parties.
He explained that while zoning is often discussed in political circles, it is not a universally adopted principle and does not carry the force of law across Nigeria’s political system.
According to him, only the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has formally entrenched zoning within its constitution, while other political parties operate without such explicit provisions.
In his words, “But if you are talking about zoning formula in the PDP and it is not south, the south has govern for 18 years and the north 10. So who is in a deficit if you want to be fair? Even if you apply it globally, I’m telling you the only party that has zoning in its constitution entrenched is the PDP. The rest don’t have.”
Expanding on his position, Atiku argued that when Nigeria’s democratic experience since 1999 is carefully examined, the South has actually held presidential power for a longer period than the North.
He said this reality challenges the widespread belief that the North has dominated political leadership, noting that such assumptions often overlook key historical developments.
Atiku maintained that discussions about fairness and equity in leadership rotation should be grounded in factual analysis rather than political sentiment.
He added that democracy should ultimately allow for open competition, where candidates are evaluated based on their competence and ability to lead, rather than strictly on regional considerations.
The former Vice President also suggested that zoning, while useful as a political tool for balancing interests, should not be treated as an absolute condition that overrides democratic choice.
