2027: Moghalu Rejects Atiku Campaign Appointment

Former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Kingsley Moghalu, has rejected his inclusion in the policy team of African Democratic Congress presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Moghalu said he was neither consulted nor asked for his consent before his name was published as a member of Atiku’s campaign policy team.

His reaction came shortly after Atiku unveiled his Presidential Campaign Council, which listed Moghalu among members of its policy team.

In a statement, Moghalu said he was surprised to see his name included in the campaign structure and made it clear that he was not a member of the team, either formally or in an advisory capacity.

He said he had left partisan politics in Nigeria in 2022 and had maintained a non-partisan position in the country’s political affairs.

Moghalu, who contested the 2019 presidential election under the Young Progressive Party, said he was not a member or sympathiser of any political party.

He explained that his current engagements include serving as president of the Institute for Governance and Economic Transformation, a non-partisan public policy think tank and executive education academy.

He also serves as Chief Executive Officer of Sogato Strategies, a geopolitical risk and regulatory strategy advisory firm.

Moghalu stressed that remaining outside partisan politics did not mean he was disengaged from national affairs or indifferent to Nigeria’s progress.

He said his commitment to the country did not require partisan alignment, adding that he had chosen what he described as “statesmanship, not partisanship.”

Atiku unveiled his campaign structure with Kashim Ibrahim-Imam as chairman and former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai as deputy chairman. Senator Austin Akobundu was named Director-General and Campaign Manager.

The campaign’s policy team is headed by economist and banker Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, with Professor Mohammed Sagagi serving as deputy chairman.

Other prominent figures named in the campaign structure include veteran journalist Dele Momodu and former Kogi State Senator Dino Melaye.

Atiku’s campaign said the policy team would develop proposals addressing major issues including the cost of living, unemployment, insecurity and declining purchasing power.

Moghalu’s rejection means his name will not represent an endorsement or formal participation in Atiku’s campaign, following his clarification that he did not authorise his inclusion in the policy team.