Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has launched a fresh attack on President Bola Tinubu, describing his administration as a disaster and reviving the controversy surrounding the $460,000 forfeiture involving funds in an account linked to the president in the United States.
Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), made the remarks while responding to Tinubu’s criticism of his investment in education, insisting that he laid the foundation for ABTI Academy in 1993, long before becoming Vice President.
In a statement issued on Saturday by his Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku accused Tinubu of attempting to distract Nigerians from the economic challenges facing the country by questioning how he established an educational institution while in public office.
“Again, Bola Tinubu has told Nigerians why they should not allow him to continue as president after his first tenure. He also chose to question my investment in education and ask how I built an educational institution while serving as Vice President.
“The answer is simple: my investment in education predates my time in public service. In 1993, while a U.S. court ordered the forfeiture of funds in an account in your name, describing them as proceeds of narcotics trafficking or funds involved in unlawful financial transactions, I was laying the foundation for ABTI Academy. That Academy has since grown into the American University of Nigeria,” Atiku said.
The former vice president argued that his business and educational records were traceable, contrasting them with what he described as unanswered questions surrounding Tinubu’s past.
“That moment captures the difference between us. My history is traceable. I can show Nigerians how I built my name, achieved success in business and entered public leadership. Your own history remains clumsy and foggy. You cannot erase it by attacking my record in education,” he added.
Atiku also accused Tinubu of worsening the country’s economic crisis, arguing that the president had no justification for seeking another term amid rising poverty, insecurity, unemployment and the cost of living.
“A president who has plunged the country into a crushing cost-of-living crisis has no business asking Nigerians for another mandate. The real conversation about the 2027 election is how to repair the damage your government has done,” he stated.
Questioning the president’s position that Nigeria could not return to fuel subsidy, Atiku challenged him to explain the direction in which his administration was taking the country.
“You say Nigeria cannot return to subsidy and must move forward. But you cannot even tell Nigerians where you are taking them. Forward into deeper poverty, mounting debt, insecurity and mass unemployment?” he asked.
The ADC presidential candidate further alleged that Tinubu’s administration had pushed more than 79 million Nigerians into extreme poverty since assuming office in 2023.
“Since your inauguration in 2023, your leadership has become synonymous with hardship, pain and despair. Your record is a working example of how a country should not be led. You have created poverty on an industrial scale, pushing more than 79 million Nigerians into extreme poverty,” he said.
He also criticised remarks attributed to Tinubu’s campaign Director-General, who reportedly described hungry Nigerians as lazy, accusing the administration of failing to acknowledge the hardship confronting citizens.
“Your campaign’s Director-General says hungry Nigerians are simply lazy. He delivered that statement in grammar so badly constructed it could wake the dead. This government does not even believe Nigerians are hungry. How can you solve a problem you refuse to acknowledge?
“You created poverty, then insult the people suffering from it. You attack my Affordable Life campaign, but the people you are really attacking are the millions of Nigerians desperate for relief from your failed leadership,” Atiku stated.
In one of the strongest passages of his statement, the former vice president declared that Nigerians had already experienced Tinubu’s leadership and passed their verdict.
“Bola, Nigerians have tested your leadership. The verdict is clear: you are a disaster. In Yoruba culture, I am told, a calabash of pepper represents hostile leadership, while a calabash of honey represents hospitable leadership. Yours is a calabash of pepper,” he said.
Atiku also vowed to restore fuel subsidy under a different arrangement if elected president in 2027, promising a transparent, production-based system tied to local refining.
“You say Nigeria will never return to subsidised petrol prices. You are wrong. By the grace of the Almighty and with the mandate of the Nigerian people, I will restore a transparent, production-based subsidy tied to the local refining of fuel. Nigerians will benefit directly through lower energy costs, including the prices of petrol and diesel,” he said.
He promised that his proposed administration would make deliberate investments in social welfare and address what he described as the diversion of funds meant for economically vulnerable Nigerians.
“My administration will make deliberate investments in social welfare and end the opaque system your government uses to divert money meant for economically vulnerable Nigerians,” he added.
The ADC candidate further accused Tinubu of attempting to prevent him from appearing on the ballot in 2027, insisting that his presidential ambition would not be derailed.
“You attack my campaign because you know what it represents: an alternative to the hardship you have imposed on the people. You want me off the ballot at all costs, but the will of the Nigerian people will prevail. I will be on that ballot, and I will beat you decisively,” he declared.
Concluding his statement, Atiku accused Tinubu of having no achievements to campaign on after three and a half years in office, vowing that his Affordable Life campaign would not be silenced.
“After three and a half years in office, you have no achievements to campaign on. Your own record of failure is the strongest campaign against you. My Affordable Life campaign will not be silenced by your insults or your threats. I will lead Nigeria back to prosperity, growth and development.”
