How the Third-Term Battle Deepened Obasanjo and Atiku’s Feud

The long-running feud between former President Olusegun Obasanjo and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is rooted in the political battles of the early 2000s. Once presented as a strong leadership partnership, their relationship broke down amid disagreements over ambition, loyalty and succession. Accounts from the period suggest that tensions first grew around Obasanjo’s re-election bid. The split became far deeper during the failed third-term proposal, which sought constitutional changes that could have allowed Obasanjo to remain in office beyond two terms. Atiku opposed the proposal and has repeatedly said he acted to defend the Constitution rather than out of personal hostility. Obasanjo, however, has continued to criticise Atiku’s presidential ambitions over the years. Despite occasional reconciliation efforts, their political relationship has remained strained. Whether the dispute can ever be fully resolved remains uncertain, but the third-term controversy appears to be the defining point of their enduring rivalry.

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