Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has responded to President Bola Tinubu over remarks concerning his involvement in Nigeria’s privatisation programme.
Tinubu had earlier criticised Abubakar, alleging that he attempted to privatise the African Democratic Congress and describing his past role in privatisation as unsuccessful.
In a statement issued by his senior special assistant on public communication, Phrank Shaibu, Abubakar dismissed the comments, labelling them a “reckless tirade” that reflects “a troubling pattern of hypocrisy and historical amnesia”.
“Atiku Abubakar’s attention has been drawn to the latest reckless tirade by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu — a performance that exposes not just desperation, but a troubling pattern of hypocrisy and historical amnesia,” the statement reads.
Shaibu argued that Tinubu’s criticism contradicts the administration’s current economic direction, noting that Abubakar had long supported the privatisation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and the sale of refineries to private investors.
He further alleged that similar policies are now being pursued without transparency.
“This is not reform; it is privatisation without accountability,” he said.
The statement also faulted Tinubu’s remarks as an attempt to ignore established facts.
“You cannot oppose reform when it demands courage and then execute a shadow version of it in power,” he said.
“The President’s attempt to reduce a serious economic legacy to playground ridicule only underscores a deeper problem: a leadership more comfortable with insults than with facts.”
Shaibu added that the current economic realities undermine the government’s reform narrative.
“Across the country, families are skipping meals, businesses are shutting their doors, and hardworking citizens are watching their incomes evaporate under the weight of relentless inflation and a collapsing purchasing power,” he said.
“What has been marketed as reform has translated into hardship without relief.”
He maintained that Abubakar’s public service record remains “clear, documented, and defensible”.
“A leader who has not fully resolved questions about his own background should exercise restraint before casting aspersions on others,” the statement added.