BAUCHI, Nigeria – Retired Air Marshal Sadique Baba Abubakar, the former Chief of the Air Staff and prominent political figure, has officially announced his complete retirement from partisan politics, bringing a sudden end to his ambitions ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Okay News reports that the decorated military officer made his decision public on Sunday, May 17, 2026, declaring that he has severed ties with all political platforms to focus on non-partisan philanthropy and community support.
“I say Goodbye to the murky waters of Nigerian Politics,” Abubakar stated in a formal announcement. “I no longer belong to any political party and will therefore not vie for any office. However, I will continue to support ordinary Nigerians to the best of my ability.”
Abubakar, who served as Nigeria’s 20th Chief of the Air Staff from 2015 to 2021, entered the political arena under the banner of the All Progressives Congress (APC). He flew the party’s flag as its governorship candidate during the fiercely contested 2023 Bauchi State gubernatorial election, where he polled 432,272 votes in a losing effort to the incumbent Governor, Bala Mohammed of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Following a protracted legal battle that ended at the Supreme Court, Abubakar became increasingly sidelined within the APC, culminating in his high-profile defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in July 2025 to restrategize for the 2027 cycle.
