Atiku: “2027 Will Be My Last Election” — Former VP Accuses Tinubu of Certificate Forgery, Dismisses Obasanjo’s Electoral Influence

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has declared that the 2027 presidential election will be his final attempt to become Nigeria’s President, as he intensifies his campaign ahead of the poll.

Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has previously confirmed that he intends to contest the 2027 election, saying his age and the high stakes involved make the coming election likely to be his last presidential outing.

The former vice president’s latest comments come amid a heated political contest involving the ADC coalition and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s All Progressives Congress (APC). Atiku lost the 2023 presidential election to Tinubu and is now seeking another opportunity to challenge the incumbent in 2027.

Atiku has also renewed allegations concerning President Tinubu’s educational credentials, claiming that certificates associated with the President are forged. The allegation remains a political claim and should not be treated as an established fact, as questions surrounding Tinubu’s qualifications have been the subject of legal and political disputes.

Indeed, allegations concerning Tinubu’s academic and National Youth Service Corps credentials have already entered the courts. In June 2026, the Centre for Reforms and Public Advocacy filed a suit at the Federal High Court in Kano seeking Tinubu’s disqualification from the 2027 election over alleged forged academic and NYSC certificates. The defendants had yet to respond to the allegations when the report was published.

In a separate development, Atiku personally filed a suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja challenging Tinubu’s eligibility for the 2027 presidential election over an alleged forged NYSC certificate. The former vice president asked the court to compel INEC to produce Tinubu’s Form CF001 submitted for the 2023 and 2027 elections.

Atiku’s latest legal challenge centres on an alleged discrepancy involving the name appearing on an NYSC discharge certificate submitted to INEC. He contends that the document bears the name “Tinubu Bola Adekunle” rather than President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s name. The allegations are before the court and remain subject to judicial determination.

The ADC presidential hopeful has also taken aim at former President Olusegun Obasanjo, dismissing suggestions that the former Nigerian leader could significantly influence the outcome of the 2027 election. Daily Post reported Atiku as saying that Obasanjo has “no electoral value,” adding another dimension to the increasingly combative political exchanges surrounding the forthcoming poll.

Atiku’s relationship with Obasanjo has a long political history. He served as Obasanjo’s vice president from 1999 to 2007, and has previously acknowledged the experience he gained during that period. In an April 2026 interview, Atiku described Obasanjo as a leader from whom he learned considerably while serving as vice president.

With the 2027 election approaching, Atiku’s decision to describe the contest as his final presidential run adds considerable weight to his campaign. He will turn 80 in 2027 and has said the election represents his last outing, while the opposition coalition continues efforts to select a candidate capable of challenging Tinubu and the APC.

The emerging battle is therefore shaping up around both personalities and issues of eligibility, governance and political influence. While Atiku’s allegations against Tinubu will ultimately be tested through the appropriate legal processes, his latest remarks signal that the 2027 presidential contest is already entering a particularly confrontational phase, with the former vice president positioning himself as a leading opposition challenger to the incumbent.