By Opeyemi Adelakun
Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has claimed that President Bola Tinubu is 90 years old, saying he is prepared to present evidence in court to support the allegation.
Atiku made the claim in an interview with BBC Hausa published on Friday, August 28, 2026, while responding to questions about his age and his suitability to contest the 2027 presidential election.
The former vice president, who will be approaching 80 by the time of the 2027 election, dismissed concerns about his age and questioned why his age should be considered a disadvantage when Nigerians previously elected an older president.
“You went and voted for someone who is 80, I mean 90 years old. How old is President Bola, 90?” Atiku said.
He subsequently insisted that his claim was backed by evidence and could be established through legal proceedings.
“You have a President who is 90 years old now and sick and I am healthy and strong. So why won’t I make myself available to serve my country?
“You went and voted for someone who is 90 years old. I have evidence that President Tinubu is 90 years old and I will present it in court,” he said.
Atiku has repeatedly defended his decision to seek the presidency again, arguing that his political experience and history in Nigeria’s democratic development remain relevant to his ambition.
He served as vice president between 1999 and 2007 under former President Olusegun Obasanjo and has contested the presidency several times, including under the Peoples Democratic Party in 2019 and 2023.
He is now seeking to contest the 2027 presidential election on the platform of the ADC after emerging as the party’s presidential candidate.
The former vice president also addressed Nigeria’s security challenges, blaming what he described as government irresponsibility for the worsening insecurity.
He promised that his administration would tackle insecurity within one year if elected, making security and economic hardship central themes of his campaign.
Atiku’s latest comments come amid an increasingly heated political contest ahead of the 2027 presidential election, with the former vice president positioning himself as a major challenger to Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress.
The two politicians have also clashed over economic policy, particularly the removal of the petrol subsidy.
On August 20, Tinubu criticised Atiku’s proposal to introduce a new form of intervention in the petroleum sector, describing a return to petrol subsidy as evidence of what he called “serious ignorance on governance and the economy.”
Tinubu argued that the subsidy had placed a significant financial burden on the government and recalled that several states previously struggled to pay workers’ salaries and pensions.
Atiku later responded through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, arguing that the removal of the subsidy had worsened the cost of living for Nigerians through higher petrol prices, transport fares and other household expenses.
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