Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has urged President Bola Tinubu to prioritise tackling hunger, insecurity and Nigeria’s worsening economic challenges instead of focusing on political opponents ahead of the 2027 general election.
Atiku’s reaction followed President Tinubu’s declaration on Tuesday that he was ready to “wrestle” his political opponents “to the finishing point” in the 2027 elections. The President made the remark while receiving members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria in Abuja after the bishops called for credible, transparent and peaceful elections.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the President should devote his energy to addressing the hardship facing millions of Nigerians rather than engaging in political rhetoric.
“Mr President, you are a drowning man. Wrestle with your failures, not your opponents,” Atiku said.
The former Vice President argued that the country’s pressing challenges, including rising inflation, food insecurity, unemployment and insecurity, deserved the President’s full attention.
“The President should wrestle with the millions of Nigerians who now skip meals because food has become a luxury.
“He should wrestle with the insecurity that has turned farming communities into graveyards and highways into hunting grounds for criminals.
“He should wrestle with the unemployment that has robbed an entire generation of hope. He should wrestle with an economy suffocating under policy inconsistency, reckless borrowing and dwindling investor confidence,” he said.
Atiku maintained that governments struggling with poor performance often resort to political grandstanding instead of addressing the real concerns of citizens.
“Empty slogans cannot fill empty stomachs. Boastful declarations cannot lower food prices. Threats against political opponents cannot restore the value of the naira,” he added.
He further argued that the President’s biggest political challenge was the record of his administration.
“His greatest opponent is his own record. Every unpaid worker, every struggling business, every unemployed graduate, every victim of insecurity and every hungry family is a living testimony to the consequences of his administration’s choices,” Atiku stated.
The former Vice President stressed that the outcome of the 2027 general election would ultimately be determined by Nigerians at the ballot box.
“In 2027, Nigerians will not be stepping into a wrestling arena. They will be stepping into polling units to deliver a constitutional verdict,” he said.
In a separate statement also signed by Shaibu, Atiku accused the Tinubu administration of fiscal recklessness over reports that the Federal Government exceeded its approved 2024 borrowing limit by ₦4.79 trillion.
He said the reported additional borrowing, which reportedly increased total fresh borrowing to ₦12.62 trillion, contradicted the administration’s promise that the removal of fuel subsidy and other economic reforms would reduce borrowing and strengthen public finances.
“Nigerians were promised that the painful removal of fuel subsidy, repeated tax hikes and other harsh economic measures would reduce borrowing and restore fiscal stability.
“Instead, the country is witnessing the exact opposite: endless borrowing, ballooning debt and unprecedented waste,” he said.
Atiku questioned the source of an additional ₦3.19 trillion reportedly obtained as budget support and criticised what he described as opaque spending, duplication of budgets and rising debt accumulation.
“The tragedy is that Nigerians are being forced to service debts whose benefits they cannot see. This is not economic reform. It is fiscal vandalism,” he added.
He said an ADC-led government would focus on blocking financial leakages, reducing wasteful spending and directing public resources towards productive investments capable of stimulating economic growth and improving citizens’ welfare.
West Trybe reports that Atiku’s latest criticism underscores the intensifying political contest ahead of the 2027 general election, as opposition parties continue to challenge the Tinubu administration’s handling of the economy, insecurity and public finances while positioning themselves as alternatives to the ruling government.
