Adamawa Govt Revokes Atiku’s Waziri Title Over New Indigeneship Policy

The Adamawa State Government has formally revoked the prestigious traditional title of Waziri Adamawa, previously held by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. The decision, communicated in a circular dated June 20, 2025, cites a new indigeneship policy that stipulates eligibility criteria for holding positions within the state’s traditional institutions.

The directive, signed by Mrs. Adama Felicity Mamman, Permanent Secretary of the Department of Chieftaincy Affairs, is part of a broader restructuring of traditional institutions initiated by Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri’s administration following the creation of new chiefdoms in the state.

Under the new policy, only indigenes from specific districts – Yola South, Yola North, Girei, Mayo-Belwa, Song, and Zumo – are eligible to hold emirate council positions or be kingmakers within the Adamawa Emirate. This effectively disqualifies Atiku Abubakar, who hails from Jada Local Government Area, which falls under the Ganye Chiefdom, not the specified districts of the Adamawa Emirate. The policy is reported to affect several other traditional titleholders whose origins lie outside the newly approved districts.

The Waziri Adamawa is traditionally considered the second highest-ranking figure in the Adamawa Emirate, after the Lamido of Adamawa. Atiku Abubakar was turbaned as the seventh Waziri Adamawa in November 2018.

While the state government insists the move is purely administrative and part of ongoing reforms, political observers have linked the timing of the revocation to a growing political rift between Governor Fintiri and Atiku Abubakar. Both prominent figures of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) during thec 2023 elections, their relationship is believed to have deteriorated amid recent political realignments. Atiku has, in recent months, been associated with talks involving other key national political actors, fueling speculation about a new opposition coalition ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Further intensifying the controversy is a new executive bill currently before the Adamawa State House of Assembly, which seeks to empower the governor to depose ailing emirs or kings and appoint successors directly. Critics argue that such a bill could concentrate excessive authority in the hands of the state executive and erode the autonomy of traditional institutions.

As of the time of this report, there has been no official statement from Atiku Abubakar or his representatives regarding the revocation of his title.