Presidency slams Atiku over US petitions against Tinubu

The Presidency on Thursday fired back at former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over reports that his lobbying group in the United States had submitted petitions to President Donald Trump and the US State Department regarding a 1993 civil forfeiture case against President Bola Tinubu, Punch Newspapers reported.

It described the move as an affront to Nigeria’s sovereignty, citing Atiku’s own legal exposure in the United States.

In a statement signed Thursday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency said the 1993 case had been resolved more than 30 years ago with no criminal conviction or finding of guilt, adding that reviving it through paid foreign lobbyists was “an attempt to externalise domestic politics and undermine Nigeria’s sovereignty.”

Onanuga wrote, “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.

“Reporting the President of Nigeria to another country’s leader is not only inappropriate but also undermines the nation’s dignity and independence.

“Nigeria is a sovereign nation, not a satellite of any foreign power.”

The Presidency argued that the matter had been thoroughly litigated and rendered moot by the electoral mandates conferred on Tinubu by the people of Lagos and Nigeria, and later affirmed by the Supreme Court.

“Nigerians resolved this matter at the ballot in February 2023 and in the Supreme Court. That verdict stands, and Atiku’s latest fishing expedition would amount to nought,” the statement read.

It further cited Atiku’s own legal history in the United States, drawing attention to the William Jefferson bribery scandal, in which the American congressman was convicted and jailed, and a 2010 US Senate investigation chaired by Senator Carl Levin titled ‘Keeping Foreign Corruption Out of the United States: Four Case Histories’.

The Presidency said the case documented how Atiku used offshore companies to bring suspect funds, including alleged bribes from multinationals running into millions of dollars, into the United States.

It noted that Atiku’s former wife, Jennifer Douglas, was also cited as a subject of that investigation.

“Furthermore, if Atiku Abubakar can spend $1.2m on American lobbyists to report President Tinubu, perhaps he should also clarify his own legal standing in the United States,” Onanuga said.

The Presidency also cited the privatisation programme overseen by Atiku during his tenure as Vice President under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, describing it as “an egregious privatisation heist” in which national assets were allegedly sold to cronies at undervalue.

It said the deals reached under the privatisation programme caused mass job losses and unpaid salaries and pensions.

“A man with such a dismal record as a public servant certainly has no business asking for our votes,” the statement said.

It also questioned the motivation behind Atiku’s presidential ambition, saying it was “driven not just by his marabout-fuelled ambition, but by a desire for diplomatic immunity and to evade potential legal issues abroad.”

Onanuga insisted that the President was not distracted by the development, saying, “President Tinubu is unfazed by Atiku’s theatrics as he remains focused on his Renewed Hope Agenda, stabilising the economy, attracting investments, securing the nation, and restoring Nigeria’s standing in the world.

“He is not distracted by political actors, perennial losers like Atiku, who now seek validation abroad.”

Atiku contested the 2023 presidential election on the Peoples Democratic Party platform and lost to Tinubu before moving to the African Democratic Congress for his 2027 bid.