The Citizens Alliance for Transparent Leadership (CATL) has launched a strong rebuttal against former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, accusing him of attempting to rewrite history and unfairly diminish the legacy of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
The group’s reaction followed a statement by Atiku, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), on Wednesday, in which he described Jonathan’s presidency as a “product of inexperience” and said his 2015 electoral defeat was largely a result of that inexperience.
In a statement jointly signed by its Convener, Dr. Musa Ibrahim, and Publicity Secretary, Comrade Oghenekaro Samuel, CATL described the claim as “not just wrong, but mischievous.”
“Dr. Jonathan rose through every constitutional rung of leadership—Deputy Governor, Governor, Vice-President, and Acting President during a critical national period. To dismiss that trajectory as ‘inexperience’ is either a willful distortion of facts or a troubling misunderstanding of governance itself,” the group stated.
The organisation questioned the basis of Atiku’s criticism, arguing that while Jonathan’s competence was tested in office, Atiku’s presidential experience remains largely defined by repeated ambition.
“It is remarkable that someone whose ‘experience’ is largely defined by repeated ambition now seeks to diminish the record of a leader whose competence was tested in office, under pressure, and in full public view,” the statement added.
Defending Jonathan’s administration, CATL pointed to major economic and structural reforms carried out during his tenure, insisting that Nigeria witnessed measurable progress under his leadership.
“Under Dr. Jonathan, Nigeria did not drift—it advanced. The economy was rebased to become Africa’s largest, the power sector was unbundled, agricultural corruption networks were dismantled, and long-abandoned rail and road infrastructure were revived. These are verifiable milestones, not opinions,” the group said.
The organisation also highlighted Jonathan’s decision to concede defeat in the 2015 presidential election, describing it as one of the most significant democratic acts in Nigeria’s political history.
“When faced with the choice between personal power and national peace, Dr. Jonathan chose Nigeria. His peaceful concession remains one of the most consequential acts of democratic leadership on the continent,” it noted.
Describing Atiku’s remarks as an attempt to distort a period Nigerians personally witnessed, CATL said the former president’s record cannot be casually dismissed.
“To now reduce that legacy to ‘inexperience’ is not just ironic—it is an attempt to gaslight a nation that lived through and benefited from those years,” the statement read.
The group maintained that leadership should be assessed based on outcomes and national impact rather than political rhetoric.
“If experience is the argument, then the distinction is clear: one man has a record that can be scrutinised; the other has a résumé of repeated attempts,” it said.
CATL concluded that Jonathan’s legacy remains firmly rooted in policy achievements, economic reforms, and democratic stability.
“Dr. Jonathan’s record is written in results and national impact. No amount of political revisionism can erase it,” the group stated.
