Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has responded to recent allegations from the presidency, rejecting claims that he is envious of President Bola Tinubu.
Abubakar, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the 2023 presidential election, countered suggestions that his criticisms of Tinubu’s policies stem from jealousy, insisting that his concerns are rooted in the pain Nigerians are enduring under the current administration.
The response came after Bayo Onanuga, President Tinubu’s special adviser on information and strategy, criticized Abubakar for persistently attacking the government’s economic reforms.
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Abubakar has repeatedly described the economic policies of the Tinubu administration as a “cocktail of ideas” lacking clear and actionable plans for long-term success.
In a statement issued by his special assistant on public communication, Phrank Shaibu, Abubakar reiterated that his criticisms are not driven by personal rivalry but by the harmful impact of the policies on ordinary Nigerians.
He argued that while President Tinubu pushes reforms, he does so without adequately assessing their potential consequences, leading to avoidable hardship for the people.
Abubakar also outlined alternative reforms he would have pursued, had he been elected, presenting a stark contrast to what he perceives as the government’s missteps.
“On July 8, 2024, Tinubu announced that import duty on essential goods like food would be lifted for 150 days. But over 120 days later, the policy is yet to take off while Nigerians continue to die daily due to increasing costs, including food inflation, which now exceeds 40 percent, the highest in decades.
“The brazen disobedience to a government policy by Tinubu’s appointees and the failure of the finance ministry to issue a gazette after over four months reflect the fatuousness, inanity, and incompetence that characterise the Tinubu administration.
“Sadly, rather than focus on governance, they are preoccupied with verbally assaulting their opponents — Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi — while using compromised courts to foster crisis in the opposition. What a shame!
“Tinubu was obviously unprepared for office. He acts first and thinks of the consequences afterwards. This was why he announced an abrupt removal of the petrol subsidy without any cushions.
“After seeing the effect, he then hurriedly decided to push a CNG initiative, which even he and his ministers have not embraced, hence their refusal to use it. The CNG initiative has so far failed to fully kick off because of a lack of gas infrastructure in most states.
“It is ludicrous to claim that Atiku is jealous of Tinubu. Hell no, Atiku cannot be jealous of Tinubu inflicting pain on Nigerians.
“Wickedness is an exclusive preserve of Tinubu, and no compassionate leader who truly cares about the wellbeing of Nigerians should be jealous of what is an exclusive preserve of T-Pain.”
Abubakar said the naira is “currently the worst performing currency in Africa and Nigeria is now the fifth largest economy on the continent, falling from first when the failure called APC took over in 2015”.
