Lecturers Who Endorse Tinubu Shouldn’t Serve As Electoral Officers – Atiku, APM

…Why we endorsed the president – Prof. Musa

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has warned that the 600 Northern lecturers who recently endorsed President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 election should not be recruited by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to serve as electoral officers at next year’s polls.

He stated this while reacting to the Northern lecturers’ endorsement of Tinubu last weekend in Kaduna State.

Atiku’s concerns were corroborated by the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), which expressed disappointment that academicians are meant to assess the Tinubu administration as enlightened critics, and not just declare endorsements like the controversial charismatic bishops.

However, the Vice Chancellor of Kaduna State University, Prof. Abdullahi Ibrahim Musa, defended the endorsement, explaining why over 600 lecturers in the 19 Northern states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) endorsed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a second term in office.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with LEADERSHIP on Monday, Musa, who read the communique of the meeting held behind closed doors in Kaduna at the weekend, said the decision was reached based on Tinubu’s impressive achievements and performance in office in the last three years, backed by data and figures.

Atiku Speaks

Atiku, who reacted through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, expressed concern over the endorsement and warned that “academics who openly declare partisan allegiance should not subsequently be entrusted with sensitive electoral responsibilities by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.”

He said the lecturers have every constitutional right to support, campaign for and vote for any candidate of their choice, but that it is unacceptable for persons who have publicly taken partisan positions to later present themselves as neutral electoral officials.

“Any academic who openly endorses a presidential candidate should not come anywhere near sensitive INEC assignments as Returning Officers, Collation Officers or officials entrusted with the collation, declaration and announcement of election results. Electoral credibility requires not only actual neutrality, but also public confidence in the neutrality of those administering the process.”

He said it was more disturbing that elected governors and a serving Minister of Defence were present at the endorsement.

“That senior officials of the ruling party would lend the weight of their offices to such an overtly partisan gathering of academics is deeply troubling and speaks to the desperation surrounding the Tinubu administration’s quest for re-election.

“It is a shame that the Tinubu administration appears determined to strip our scholars of the dignity of their academic gowns and dress them instead in the garb of partisan political rascality. Universities should remain centres of independent thought, scholarship and intellectual freedom, not recruitment grounds for the political machinery of a desperate ruling party.”

“What we are witnessing tells the story of a government increasingly prepared to push against every moral boundary in its determination to secure another term in office, regardless of the damage done to institutions that ought to command public trust.”

He said INEC must take note and ensure that academics who have publicly declared partisan allegiance are excluded from sensitive electoral responsibilities in the 2027 elections.

Reacting also, the National Publicity Secretary of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Mr. Abubakar Yusuf, said: “Well, this is politics, which is full of many things, including propaganda. Everyone is entitled to his/her opinion as well as voting rights. But I don’t subscribe to this. It will not come from the ivory tower, where insecurity, hardship and the bad policies of the Tinubu administration have crippled the country.

“We expect academicians, as the hub of critique, to assess the administration fairly and not endorse, just like the controversial charismatic bishops, coming at a time when the Catholics and other religious groups are complaining of the sufferings of Nigerians.”

Kaduna Varsity VC Defends Endorsement

The Vice Chancellor of Kaduna State University, Prof. Musa, defended the endorsement of Tinubu by the lecturers, stressing that Tinubu is ahead of other presidential candidates in terms of performance and credibility.

He added that the academics noted the ongoing infrastructure development in the North, like the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano Expressway, railway construction, NELFUND and improved TETFund interventions, among others.

“It’s a combination of lecturers coming from all over the 19 Northern states and Abuja to discuss issues in relation to democracy, governance, and the seven-point agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and then provide an analysis and move forward. The endorsement was based on his impressive achievements and performance in office.”

“We are trying to reach an agreement. We have to base all of what we said on what we have on ground. And that means data and figures. A lot of data has been made, analysis of those data has been done, and we came to the conclusion that if you look at the infrastructural developments, NELFUND and improved intervention by TETFund, and issues related to infrastructural development like railway construction and the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road network that has persisted for several years, and if you look at food prices, the time he came in and now, we are talking about lower prices of food.

“So academics are known to base their action or inaction on facts and figures. And we are not saying that if anybody has data that goes contrary to what we have analysed, that is his own opinion. Over 600 academics in the 19 Northern states and FCT endorsed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a second term in office,” Musa stated.

The endorsement meeting, which was convened by the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Ibrahim Masari, was attended by Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani; Governor of Zamfara State, Dauda Lawal; Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni; Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, and his Gombe counterpart, Inuwa Yahaya.

Others who attended included the Minister of Defence, Bello Matawalle; Minister of Housing, Muttaqha Rabe Darma, and former Governor of Katsina State, Aminu Bello Masari.