Former Presidential aide, Laolu Akande, says the lobbying activities of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar in the United States have intensified political tensions ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.
Akande, speaking during the ‘My Take’ segment of Channels Television’s Inside Sources, said Atiku had entered full campaign mode as the January 2027 elections draw closer, with the former vice-president increasingly attacking President Bola Tinubu and challenging some of the administration’s major policy decisions.
According to him, the sharpest confrontation between the opposition and the Tinubu administration is currently playing out in Washington, DC, where Atiku’s US lobbying activities have brought an old civil forfeiture case involving the president back into public discussion.
‘With January 2027 polls on the horizon, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is in full campaign mode, singing and attacking the president from all sides,’ Akande said.
‘After all, the president himself said, ‘All is fair in politics’. So, you can’t blame Atiku.’
Akande said the former vice-president’s US lobbyist, Ikemefuna Okeke, had succeeded in putting the 1993 civil forfeiture case on the political front burner through his activities surrounding a civil suit seeking disclosure of information relating to the matter.
He argued that the development had shifted some of the political conversation away from the Tinubu administration and towards questions surrounding the president’s past, thereby raising tensions ahead of the 2027 elections.
‘The sharpest edge of the fight right now is in Washington DC. Atiku’s US lobbyist Ikemefuna Okeke has successfully put the 1993 civil forfeiture case on the front burner,’ he said.
‘Through his active reporting of the civil suit that is seeking disclosure on the matter, [Okeke] has been able to put Aso Rock on the back burner and is raising political tensions.’
Akande, however, cautioned against creating unrealistic expectations about what the US courts could ultimately disclose, noting that the political attention surrounding the case could go beyond what the legal proceedings are capable of establishing.
‘It also raises some unrealistic expectations about what the courts might reveal or not,’ he said.
Beyond the US legal controversy, Akande noted that Atiku had also succeeded in returning the petrol subsidy debate to the centre of Nigeria’s political conversation.
The former vice-president has repeatedly criticised the removal of the petrol subsidy and has indicated that he would revisit aspects of the policy if elected president in 2027.
Akande said the issue demonstrates how economic policy is already becoming an important battleground in the emerging presidential contest.
The former presidential aide also addressed attempts by some supporters of Tinubu to discredit Okeke by focusing on his reported change of name.
He argued that attacking the lobbyist over his name was unlikely to be an effective political strategy, noting that changes in names are not unusual, particularly in the United States.
‘On social media, some supporters of the president have tried to dismiss him because of the name change. Why is the man hiding behind German-British sounding name? I think that is losing the argument,’ Akande said.
‘The president has had different iterations of his own name over the years. And, in America, it’s routine.’
Akande also questioned some of Okeke’s claims about his official position within the US government.
He said Okeke’s announcement that he had become a White House commissioner could give the impression that he had secured a senior position within the White House, but that subsequent clarification indicated that the role was a non-paid position connected to the US Department of Education.
‘His announcement that he is now a White House commissioner sounded like a senior West Wing appointment. But PerSecond News clarified it that it is a non-paid role in the Department of Education in the selection panel for high school scholars’ programme,’ Akande said.
‘No policy portfolio inside the White House. The man just wanted it to sound bigger.’
He similarly questioned Okeke’s claim of being a senior US government adviser, saying there was no publicly established evidence of such a position.
Akande further referenced reports concerning Okeke’s previous identity and legal history, saying a New York-based journalist had attributed his reported name change to his desire to adopt a more aristocratic-sounding identity following a domestic violence conviction involving his girlfriend.
He stressed that the claims were matters Okeke would need to address directly, while acknowledging the political effectiveness of the lobbying campaign.
‘Court records are being cited and he will need to address that directly. But to his credit, he is landing some serious punches against the president,’ Akande said.
The controversy reflects the increasingly combative nature of Nigeria’s political environment as political parties and presidential hopefuls position themselves for the 2027 elections.
For Akande, however, the emerging contest should ultimately be determined by competing policy proposals rather than personal attacks, controversies or attempts to expose damaging information about political opponents.
‘Altogether, 2027 should be decided on who can throw the best policy ideas, not who can throw the dirtiest punches,’ he stated.