THE Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Lere Olayinka, has dismissed the large number of presidential candidates expected to contest the 2027 general elections, saying many of them are content creators rather than serious contenders.
News Point Nigeria reports that Olayinka made the remarks on Thursday while appearing as a guest on TVC’s flagship political programme, Beyond the Headlines, where he discussed the state of the opposition ahead of the 2027 elections.
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Speaking on the opposition’s preparedness for the election, Olayinka argued that the presence of 19 presidential candidates did not necessarily translate into a competitive race against President Bola Tinubu.
He said only a few of the candidates were contesting with a genuine intention to win, while others were in the race to remain relevant and create social media content.
“Stop calling them opposition. Some of these people are not opposing government, they are opposing retirement. Some of them are just content creators,” Olayinka said.
According to him, politics has become a platform for some individuals to maintain visibility, with elections being used to generate online engagement rather than offer alternative ideas.
“So it is not everybody that contests elections that wants to win. There are people that contest elections just to register their presence,” he stated.
He maintained that the 2027 contest could not be judged by the number of candidates alone, stressing that President Tinubu remained the candidate to beat based on his performance and national spread.
“In this 2027 election, we have 19 presidential candidates. Can we honestly say all 19 are contesting with the mindset of winning? The answer is no,” he said.
Olayinka singled out former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), for criticism, describing him as a perennial contestant in presidential elections.
“Atiku has been pursuing Aso Rock for so long that even Google Map must be tired of giving him directions. Maybe his doctors prescribed the presidency to him as a drug he must use,” he said.
He also described Atiku as the only holder of the title of “Contestant General of the Federal Republic”, adding that if presidential ambition were a university course, the former vice president would be a professor emeritus.
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“Look at Atiku, Peter Obi, and Rufai; one is looking for the presidency, another is looking for a political miracle, and the third is looking for somebody to interrupt on television,” he added.
Olayinka said the opposition had failed to present a coherent alternative to the Tinubu administration, arguing that its campaigns were built on sentiments and social media trends rather than verifiable achievements.
He cited road construction, urban renewal and reforms in the FCT under the Minister, Nyesom Wike, as evidence of the administration’s commitment to development.
The presidential aide expressed confidence that Tinubu would secure a second term, saying Nigerians would not repeat what he described as the political mistake of 2023.
On the Rainbow Coalition unveiled in the FCT, Olayinka said there was no confusion about its purpose, describing it as a deliberate effort by Wike to unite politicians across party lines in support of Tinubu’s re-election.
“There is no confusion about the Rainbow Coalition. It is very clear. It is a coalition of people who love the FCT and who love President Bola Tinubu, irrespective of political party,” Olayinka said.
He cited Osun and Anambra states as examples, arguing that the political alignment taking place in the FCT was not unusual and was already happening at the national level.
According to him, Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), is now serving as the Osun State Coordinator for the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council.
“In Osun, you have an Accord governor, Ademola Adeleke, who is coordinating President Tinubu’s campaign. Is there confusion there? No. It is about interest and development,” he stated.
He said the same logic applied in Anambra State, where Governor Chukwuma Soludo, a member of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), had been named the state coordinator for the Tinubu campaign.
“In Anambra, you have Governor Soludo, who is APGA, but he is coordinating for Tinubu. That is exactly what Rainbow Coalition is about. It is about serious leaders putting national interest above party interest,” he said.
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Olayinka recalled that during an interactive session in Bwari Area Council on Thursday, the FCT APC Chairman, Tanko Yamawo, and the PDP Chairman, Ismaila Dogara, both spoke in support of the coalition.
He assured that the coalition would be replicated in all area councils of the FCT, including the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Kuje, Gwagwalada, Kwali and Abaji, to ensure total victory for President Tinubu in the 2027 general elections.
