A United States-based policy advisory and lobbying firm linked to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has alleged that its founder, Dr Karl Von Batten, was offered $3 million to stop its campaign concerning allegations against President Bola Tinubu.

The firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, made the allegation in a statement posted on its X account on Wednesday, saying Von Batten was also invited to a confidential meeting in London.

According to the firm, the offer was made “a few days ago” by a highly placed individual whom it was told was connected to President Tinubu.

The lobbying firm said the alleged payment was intended to persuade Von Batten to end its campaign concerning what it described as allegations relating to Tinubu’s alleged heroin-trafficking records.

Von Batten-Montague-York said its founder rejected the offer and immediately preserved copies of the communications exchanged with the alleged intermediary.

The firm added that Von Batten subsequently contacted members of Atiku Abubakar’s campaign to establish the nature of the individual’s alleged relationship with the President.

It also alleged that a smear campaign against its founder began shortly after he rejected the offer.

The firm said it would submit the alleged $3 million offer and the related communications to the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for review.

The statement said, “A few days ago, Dr. Von Batten received unsolicited offers of $3 million, along with an invitation to a confidential meeting in London, from a highly placed individual whom we have been informed is connected to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu.”

It added that Von Batten “refused the offers, immediately preserved copies of the exchanges” and contacted members of Atiku’s campaign.

The allegation has drawn a response from the Presidency, which questioned the credibility of the lobbying firm and rejected any suggestion that Von Batten was speaking on behalf of the United States government or President Donald Trump.

Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Media and Public Communications, Sunday Dare, described Von Batten as a commercial lobbyist and accused the firm of presenting political claims as intelligence reports.

Dare challenged those behind the allegations to produce what they described as a “highly classified intelligence report”, identify their unnamed sources and provide documentary evidence.

He said the claims contained no intelligence document, named Western official or evidence of any exchange involving Nigeria’s secrets or resources.

“It is nothing more than political speculation packaged as classified information,” Dare said.

Dare also rejected the description of Von Batten as a “Senior Government Advisor”, saying the title was misleading.

“The self-bestowed appellation of ‘Senior Government Advisor’ is a linguistic sleight of hand,” he said.

According to Dare, Von Batten is the founder of Von Batten-Montague-York, L.C., a commercial lobbying firm and not a US government official.

The Presidential aide also questioned the relationship between Atiku and the lobbying firm, citing filings made under the United States Foreign Agents Registration Act, FARA.

Dare said the filings showed that Atiku contracted Von Batten-Montague-York, L.C. on a $1.2 million, 12-month retainer.

He alleged that the engagement was aimed at countering Nigerian government narratives and using historical US legal records for political leverage ahead of the 2027 general election.

Dare said the Nigerian connection was evident from the names contained in the lobbying documents and accused the firm of producing public relations materials that were being presented as the position of the US government.

He also questioned claims that Von Batten had access to President Trump or members of his administration or could influence ongoing US legal proceedings.

Despite the Presidency’s response, Von Batten-Montague-York maintained that it had preserved the communications relating to the alleged $3 million offer and would provide them to US authorities for review.

The firm concluded its statement with a message directed at Tinubu, the All Progressives Congress and their associates.

“We have a simple message for President Bola Tinubu, the APC, and their associates: Thank you for the offer, but no thanks,” it said.

However, the allegation that Von Batten was offered $3 million to end the campaign, as well as the claim that the individual who allegedly made the offer was connected to Tinubu, could not be independently verified as of the time of filing.

The claims concerning alleged heroin-trafficking records are also allegations made by the lobbying firm and have not been established as facts by a court or relevant authority.

Similarly, the Presidency’s claims about the purpose and nature of Atiku’s engagement with the lobbying firm are part of the ongoing political dispute, although Dare said they were based on US FARA filings.

The competing claims come amid heightened political activity ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general election.