Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the All Democratic Congress (ADC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has faulted President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Independence Day broadcast, saying the latter’s claim of prosperity does not reflect reality of Nigerians.
Atiku, in a speech delivered at ADC Headquarters, Abuja, on Thursday to mark Nigeria’s 66th Independence anniversary, said 66 years after independence, millions of Nigerians are fighting for food, living wage and safe journey home.
He said past three years under Tinubu have plunged Nigeria into most severe cost of living crisis, with families skipping meals, delaying treatment and borrowing to survive.
‘What has this government asked of them? More patience. More sacrifice. More faith in figures they cannot eat,’ Atiku said.
He said, ‘Bola, your speech is full of ‘we will.’ We will make farming cheaper. We will power factories. We will create jobs. We will bring down prices. You have been President for more than three years. Nigerians are entitled to ask what you have done with the time already given to you.
‘My dear Bola, you said the people ‘cannot wait for tomorrow.’ On that, I agree with you. Yet almost every answer in your address was about tomorrow. But Nigerians are hungry today. They pay transport fares today. They need jobs and safety today.
‘Bola, the Promised Land is not in sight merely because you can see it from the villa. Nigerians must be able to reach it. We have chosen a different course, peacefully and together, through the power of our votes; the message is clear: Tinubu must go.’
He criticised removal of fuel subsidy with one announcement and no credible protection for families, saying petrol, transport and food costs rose.
Atiku said the President’s Independence Day speech claiming ’emergency treatment is over’ and ‘age of prosperity has begun’ does not put food on the table.
‘Bola Tinubu told us that the emergency treatment is over and the age of prosperity has begun. A President may announce new chapter in speech. He cannot announce food onto family’s table or money into worker’s pocket. Bola, where is this prosperity?’ he queried.
He said a slower rise in prices does not restore what families have lost, adding that growth must improve lives.
Atiku faulted the analogy of Nigeria as a cancer patient, asking why it is harder to buy food, medicine and transport after three years of treatment.
He said Nigerians are not asking for morphine but asking what happened to subsidy savings.
Citing the cost of living, he said in April 2023, N30,000 minimum wage could buy about 118 litres of petrol, while today N70,000 minimum wage buys just 50 litres.
He also said the average price of one egg rose from N88 in April 2023 to N261 in May 2026, and a sliced loaf from N500 to about N2,000 for a smaller loaf.
He announced a plan to introduce a capped, budgeted production subsidy tied to verified fuel refined in Nigeria, including from modular refineries, with costs published and audited.
Atiku also faulted the government’s fiscal management, questioning the extension of the 2025 budget till the end of 2026 while the 2026 budget exists alongside it.
He alleged lack of transparency in the award of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway contract to Hitech, a company linked to Chagoury Group, and called for publication of invitations, bids, evaluations, and contract details.
He urged the government to pay local contractors who completed projects and are being owed.
He said public debt stood at N166.79 trillion at the end of June, and the government is discussing another $1.5bn World Bank loan, demanding accountability on what borrowed money delivered.
Atiku questioned the claim that over 10 million Nigerians received N75,000 each in cash transfers, asking for an auditable account of how the money reached beneficiaries.
He recalled the stampede at Niger State Government House where three people died amid reports of N10,000 distribution.
He dismissed the promise of lower transport fares from October 1, asking the government to publish routes, fares and beneficiaries.
On political freedom, Atiku called for rule of law, raising concerns over the detention of Sheikh Sani Khalifa Zaria and Mallam Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, and said the right of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu to lawful appeal must be respected.
He also called for the release of five young Nigerians arrested in Borno after wearing ‘Tinubu Must Go’ T-shirts, saying political slogans must never become a reason to imprison citizens.
Atiku promised to end election rigging if elected, respect INEC’s independence and ensure vote buying and result manipulation are punished.
‘Our founders did not win sovereignty so that few could prosper while millions merely survive,’ he said.
Atiku said from his first day in office, he would put affordability and the protection of life at the centre of government.
‘We will begin bringing down the costs of food, fuel and power, improving access to healthcare and education, and restoring security to communities living in fear. I will account for public spending and measure progress by what Nigerians can afford and whether they can live safely.’