Former Vice President of Nigeria and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has described the Presidency’s latest statement attacking him as further proof that the Tinubu administration has chosen diversion over disclosure and insults over accountability.
In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said it was telling that the Presidency devoted several paragraphs to personal attacks without addressing the fundamental issues that continue to generate legitimate public interest.
His reaction comes after the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said in a statement released on Thursday that Atiku’s latest action through his US lobbying group undermined Nigeria’s dignity and sovereignty.
The Presidency accused him of resorting to ‘reckless public statements and desperate political manoeuvres’ by reporting President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to US President Donald Trump and members of the US Congress.
Reacting to the Presidency’s statement, the Waziri Adamawa said: ‘When governments abandon facts for insults and substitute evidence with abuse, they unwittingly admit that they have run out of convincing answers. Nigerians expected clarification. What they received instead was a barrage of name-calling and political invective.’
Atiku noted that raising questions about matters contained in public records should never be misconstrued as an attack on Nigeria’s sovereignty.
‘No one has reported Nigeria to anyone. Nigeria is not on trial. The issue concerns questions arising from publicly available records relating to the occupant of the nation’s highest office. Those records were not created by the opposition, the ADC, or any political actor. Attempting to silence legitimate public inquiry by wrapping oneself in the national flag does not answer the questions before the country.’
The former Vice President said it was particularly unfortunate that the Presidency chose to revive old political allegations against him instead of responding directly to the issues confronting it.
‘Nigerians can distinguish between political mudslinging and factual responses. Personal attacks do not erase public records, nor do they substitute for transparency. The Presidency should resist the temptation to personalise issues that require clear and factual explanations.’
Atiku further observed the irony of an administration that actively seeks foreign investment, foreign loans, favourable international ratings and global endorsements, yet suddenly portrays international scrutiny as an assault on Nigeria’s independence.
‘You cannot celebrate international validation when it is convenient and condemn international scrutiny when it becomes uncomfortable. Accountability is not foreign interference; it is a democratic obligation.’
He also dismissed the argument that electoral victory automatically settles every question concerning public accountability.
‘Elections confer political authority, but they do not extinguish the public’s right to ask questions. A democratic mandate is not a substitute for transparency, nor does it exempt any public official from the obligation to account to the people.’
Atiku urged the Presidency to abandon its combative posture and provide Nigerians with clear, factual responses instead of inflammatory rhetoric.
‘If the government believes that the public record has been misunderstood or misrepresented, the appropriate response is to present the facts. Abuse cannot replace evidence, and propaganda cannot replace truth.’
The former Vice President maintained that history has consistently shown that confident governments respond to scrutiny with openness rather than hostility.
‘The Nigerian people deserve answers, not insults. They want to know if their President forfeited money to the Government of the United States of America on account of drug-related offences. They deserve transparency, not diversion. Until those questions are addressed with facts, no amount of outrage or personal attacks will silence legitimate public inquiry.’
Presidency accuses Atiku of undermining Nigeria’s sovereignty over petition to Trump
Onanuga, in the statement titled, ‘When Will Atiku Abubakar Report Himself to President Trump?’, said: ‘Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s relentless desire to become President of Nigeria has regrettably closed his eyes to the virtues of statesmanship, decorum and propriety expected of an elder statesman.
‘It is baffling and disappointing that someone who has sought the presidency for over three decades now resorts to reporting the President of Nigeria to US President Donald Trump and members of the US Congress.
‘In his latest act, Atiku Abubakar’s lobbying group in the US has submitted petitions to President Trump and the US State Department regarding a civil forfeiture case from 1993-a matter long settled, with no criminal conviction or finding of guilt.’
The Presidency said the 1993 case was resolved more than 30 years ago and had been ‘thoroughly litigated, explained and rendered moot by the electoral mandates conferred on President Bola Tinubu by the people of Lagos and Nigeria at large.’
‘Reviving this matter today is an affront to the intelligence of Nigerians and an attempt to rewrite history for personal gain,’ the statement added.
Onanuga described the move as an attempt to ‘externalise domestic politics’, stressing that Nigeria is a sovereign nation.
‘It is important to remind Atiku and his associates that Nigeria is a sovereign nation, not a satellite of any foreign power. Reporting the President of Nigeria to another country’s leader is not only inappropriate but also undermines the nation’s dignity and independence.
‘While lobbying is a legitimate part of American politics, employing paid foreign agents to peddle discredited documents against a sitting Nigerian President is not advocacy-it is an attempt to externalise domestic politics and undermine Nigeria’s sovereignty. Nigerians resolved this matter at the ballot in February 2023 and at the Supreme Court. That verdict stands, and Atiku’s latest fishing expedition will amount to nought.’
The statement also questioned Atiku’s own legal standing in the US, referencing past investigations.
‘Furthermore, if Atiku Abubakar can spend $1.2 million on American lobbyists to report President Tinubu, perhaps he should also clarify his own legal standing in the United States.
‘He featured most prominently in the William Jefferson bribery scandal, a matter that saw the American congressman jailed. Atiku, along with his former wife, Jennifer Douglas, was one of the subjects of an elaborate US Senate investigation, Keeping Foreign Corruption Out of the United States: Four Case Histories.
‘The report of the investigation, chaired by Senator Carl Levin, was released in February 2010. It documented how Atiku used offshore companies to bring suspect funds, including bribes from multinationals running into millions of dollars, into the United States.’
The Presidency further alleged that Atiku’s presidential ambition was driven by a desire for ‘diplomatic immunity and to evade potential legal issues abroad.’
Onanuga also accused Atiku of presiding over a flawed privatisation exercise as Vice President, saying the Tinubu administration is currently clearing the backlog of unpaid salaries and pensions.
‘Nigerians have not forgotten the legacy of the privatisation programme under Atiku’s watch as Vice President. He presided over an egregious privatisation heist, selling national assets to cronies for peanuts and causing thousands of job losses, unpaid salaries and pensions that President Tinubu is clearing today.
‘A man with such a dismal record as a public servant certainly has no business asking for our votes.’
The Presidency said President Tinubu remained focused on the Renewed Hope Agenda and was ‘not distracted by political actors, perennial losers like Atiku, who now seek validation abroad.’
‘Rather than present policy alternatives to address the country’s challenges, the former Vice President has chosen the path of media theatrics and lobbying in Washington. The challenges Nigeria faces require serious engagement, thoughtful solutions and leadership at home-not grandstanding abroad,’ the statement added.