Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has promised that, should he be elected President in 2027, the Yoruba people’s interests will “occupy a topmost place” in his administration’s policies.
He called the idea that, should he be elected, his presidency “may lead to Hausa/Fulani domination over Yoruba or other ethnic groups” baseless.
“The entire Yoruba stock is my larger extended family and in-laws,” Atiku stated in a statement on Thursday issued in Abuja by his media consultant, Kola Johnson.
Former vice president Atiku emphasised that such fears were unfounded due to his personal and marital ties to the Yoruba.
He said, “I count myself extremely lucky indeed to have had a wife from amongst this noble species of the human race, which by this token implies that the bond uniting me together with the Yoruba is aptly like the genetic bond of a family.
“This is why the Yoruba, whether individually or collectively, have always occupied a special place in my heart.”
He promised that if elected, the South-West would be central to his policymaking.
“It is also for this reason that the interest of the Yorubas will always occupy a topmost place in my policymaking and governance if, by the special Grace of Allah, I am lucky to be president in 2027.
“Therefore, the fear that my ascension to presidency might lead to Hausa/Fulani domination over Yorubas or other ethnic groups does not only arise, but also is absolutely unfounded because the entire Yoruba stock is my larger extended family and in-laws,” he stated.
Atiku further pointed to his first marriage in the 1970s to Titi, a Yoruba woman from Ijesha, as evidence of his strong ties to the South-West.
“In case you don’t know or have forgotten, I was married to my first wife, Titi, a Yoruba woman, in the 70s, and we have four Yoruba children together. She is now over 75 years old, and we are still together,” Atiku declared.
“My children with Titi sometimes call me ‘Baba Rere’, meaning good father. I am extremely in love with my children and serve as a good father to them, as I urge every father to do the same to their children.”
He said that the Yoruba had always been among his closest friends and political supporters, and he referred to his wife, who was born in Ijesha, as his “Jewel of Inestimable Value.”
“Anyone who knows me will tell you with all sincerity that, as a person, I am naturally a highly detribalised person. Even before I could ever venture into politics, I flowed easily and effortlessly with people of diverse tribes, ethnicity, religion and whatever sectarian differences,” Atiku added.
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