ABUJA, Nigeria – The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has declared that his administration will completely eliminate banditry, terrorism, and general insecurity across Nigeria within one year of assuming office if elected in the 2027 general elections, the politician stated in an interview with BBC Hausa on Friday, August 28, 2026.
The former Vice President, whose campaign pronouncements have set the agenda across national political discourse ahead of the 2027 polls, stated that his security blueprint combines mass recruitment into the armed forces with targeted economic interventions to remove the socio-economic drivers of crime.
Okay News reports that Atiku confirmed that the upcoming 2027 presidential election will be his final contest for the nation’s highest office, noting that at 79 years of age, he remains dedicated to offering mentorship and counsel to the younger generation of politicians if the mandate does not go his way.
“I will not take more than one year to end it,” Atiku said. “We will recruit additional security personnel and provide them with the necessary equipment. We will also provide adequate funding to support youths to establish businesses because many of them are involved in criminal activities due to lack of employment. We will take these measures and, within a year, we will end insecurity, God willing.”
On regional security diplomacy, the ADC candidate disclosed plans to engage heads of state within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to revitalize the ECOWAS Ceasefire Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) and restore integrated multilateral military patrols across West Africa.
Atiku criticized the breakdown in relations between Nigeria and neighboring Sahel nations following recent military coups, pledging to lead diplomatic reconciliations to reintegrate Niger Republic, Mali, and Burkina Faso into the regional bloc.
“I see no reason why Nigeria should cease its bilateral relations with Niger Republic simply because of the military takeover. What have we got to do with it? Nigeria and Niger are one. We are the same people. The fact that the military has taken over the government in Niger should not be a reason for Nigeria to cut ties with the country or support its exclusion from ECOWAS,” he said, adding that uniting the region will accelerate trade and address cross-border youth unemployment.
Weighing in on the economic crisis, Atiku reiterated his pledge to restore the petrol subsidy, arguing that the abrupt removal by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu without adequate social buffers triggered unprecedented hardship across Nigerian households and disrupted domestic agriculture and commerce.
“In my 79 years (and approaching 80 now), I have never experienced a level of hardship that Nigerians are currently experiencing. I don’t need to consult with anyone before pledging that I will restore the subsidy. I have seen the situation of the people,” he added.
Addressing the upcoming electoral process, Atiku expressed skepticism regarding the operational independence of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), but urged eligible voters across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to turn out in large numbers, protect their ballots, and ensure the true will of the electorate prevails at the collation centers.
