Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of worsening poverty in Nigeria through the removal of the petrol subsidy, while alleging that the government has mismanaged and looted the country’s resources.
Atiku, who lost the 2023 presidential election to Tinubu, made the allegations on Tuesday at his residence in Asokoro, Abuja, while receiving members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) from Osun State.
“We are competing with thieves. They have stolen the election. Now they have stolen the economy. They have stolen everything,” Atiku alleged.
The ADC presidential candidate for the 2027 election also criticised the removal of the petrol subsidy, saying it had increased economic hardship across the country.
“The removal of subsidy has driven more Nigerians into poverty than at any other time in the history of this country,” he said.
Atiku said his position on the subsidy had not changed and pledged to restore it if elected president.
“On the question of subsidy, my position has not changed and will not change: I will restore it! A nation as blessed as ours has no business abandoning its citizens to hardship. Nigeria is rich enough to look after her own,” he said.
He argued that the effectiveness of an economy should be judged by the purchasing power of citizens rather than government revenue.
“The wealth of a nation is not measured by how much government collects, but by how much the money in the pockets of its people can buy,” Atiku said. “The fundamental responsibility of the government is the welfare of the citizens.”
The Presidency had not immediately responded to Atiku’s latest allegations.
However, the Presidency last month renewed its criticism of the former vice-president, citing a 2010 US Senate report that examined alleged financial activities involving Atiku and his former wife, Jennifer Douglas.
The Presidency said the report, titled *Keeping Foreign Corruption Out of the United States: Four Case Histories*, documented allegations involving offshore companies and funds allegedly linked to bribes from multinational companies.
The allegations contained in the US Senate report have been used by the Tinubu administration in its criticism of Atiku as he seeks to challenge for the presidency again in 2027.
