The governor of Bauchi State, Senator Bala Mohammed, has told former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that he is too old and fatigued to run for the presidency in the 2023 general election.

Mohammed, 63, is asking Atiku, who is 75, to allow him to contest.

Atiku, who was the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in 2019, has positioned himself to be the flag bearer of the main opposition party in the 2023 presidential election.

The governor, while receiving the report of a Contact and Consultation Committee which he established for his presidential ambition at the Old Banquet Hall of the Government House in Bauchi on Saturday, said Atiku is old and fatigued to lead Nigeria.

His words: “We invited Atiku to Bauchi and we interacted and I told him that in this game, I know he’s the most senior, he’s very qualified but because of his age and fatigue that he has suffered so much for Nigeria, he should allow his younger brother to be his spare tyre not to take over just like that.

“But if Nigerians prefer him, I will support him. I am not too desperate but he should know that Nigerians like me too. And whatever he wants, I will do it for him, so this is our agreement, he has the highest respect from me.”

Speaking on his presidential ambition in 2023, Mohammed said: “…We have to manage the two together (Bauchi and the Presidential campaign). I told my younger brother and my colleague (deputy governor) that he should not be happy to send me forth so that he will take over the governorship, I will do the two together.

“One of my brothers, a formidable and astute politician, Matawalle Sokoto (Aminu Tambuwal) did it before, so we are going to also test it. And I will not give (the governorship seat) to hold forth, such a big man, he will not give me back when I come back, but if he will give me, I will give it to him.

“There is no need for us to be greedy. Of course, my presidency will not cause division. You can see that at the heat of the time that my elder brother, Malam Adamu was going round, we invited our elder statesman, the one that we respect so much, the Waziri Adamawa (Atiku Abubakar), we named a road after him.

“All the presidential aspirants from all the sections of the country are eminently qualified, so we should be left to discuss with each other. At this moment, we should be most concerned with our unity and the economics of the country.”

TheStar