2027: Atiku is my presidential candidate, not Peter Obi – Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour

Lagos State governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, has declared his support for Atiku Abubakar in the 2027 presidential election, despite previously campaigning for Peter Obi in 2023.

Rhodes-Vivour made his position clear during an interview with the BBC, saying he had no personal disagreement with Obi but would stand with the presidential candidate of his current party.

“I have no issue with Mr Peter Obi, regardless of what happened at the top level. My first priority is Lagos State,” he said.

“Atiku is my presidential candidate; that’s where I am.”

GRV recalled that his political journey had previously placed him on the same side as both Atiku and Obi at different times.

He noted that when he first contested for the Senate, Atiku was the presidential candidate while Obi was his running mate.

By the 2023 election, however, Rhodes-Vivour was the Labour Party governorship candidate in Lagos while Obi was the party’s presidential flagbearer.

“The first time I ran for Senate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar was the presidential candidate, Peter Obi was his vice,” he said.

“The next election, Peter Obi was running for president and Atiku Abubakar was running for president, and Peter Obi was our presidential candidate.”

Rhodes-Vivour, who has since moved to the ADC, said his political allegiance ahead of 2027 was now clear.

“I’m in the ADC. His Excellency Atiku Abubakar is my presidential candidate. That’s where I am,” he said.

He, however, maintained that Nigerians should be free to support whichever candidate they believe can move the country forward.

“Nigerians should vote for whoever they believe will work and move the country forward,” he added.

Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour also addressed the recurring controversy over claims that Lagos is a “no man’s land”.

He rejected the description outright, saying it was disrespectful to indigenous Lagos families.

“Lagos has never been a no man’s land,” he said.

“Anybody who says Lagos is no man’s land, that’s a very big insult. It’s a big insult, not just to me, it’s an insult to my ancestors.”