Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to abandon political rhetoric and focus on addressing Nigeria’s worsening economic and security challenges, saying the country’s pressing problems deserve greater attention than political battles.
Atiku’s remarks followed President Tinubu’s declaration on Tuesday that he was prepared to “wrestle” his political opponents “to the finishing point” ahead of the 2027 general election.
The President made the comment while receiving members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria in Abuja after the bishops called for credible, transparent and peaceful elections.
Reacting in a statement issued on Wednesday through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku described the President’s comments as those of “a drowning man” seeking to divert attention from what he called the failures of the current administration.
“Mr President, you are a drowning man. Wrestle with your failures, not your opponents,” Atiku said.
The former Vice President argued that Tinubu should devote his attention to tackling soaring inflation, rising food prices, unemployment, insecurity and the country’s economic decline instead of threatening political opponents.
“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 expressed disappointment that the President’s remarks came in response to an appeal by the Catholic bishops for peaceful and credible elections, insisting the occasion required reassurance, humility and statesmanship rather than combative political language.
According to him, Nigerians are no longer interested in political grandstanding but in tangible improvements in governance and living conditions.
“Empty slogans cannot fill empty stomachs. Boastful declarations cannot lower food prices. Threats against political opponents cannot restore the value of the naira,” he stated.
The ADC chieftain maintained that Tinubu’s greatest political challenge was not the opposition but the performance of his administration.
“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.
That is the contest he has consistently failed to win,” he added.
Atiku further stressed that democracy is determined by the electorate and not by political bravado, saying Nigerians would deliver their verdict through the ballot box in 2027.
“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 released on Wednesday, Atiku also accused the Tinubu administration of fiscal recklessness following reports that the Federal Government exceeded its approved borrowing limit for the 2024 fiscal year.
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He alleged that the government borrowed ₦12.62 trillion, exceeding the National Assembly-approved ceiling by ₦4.79 trillion, despite earlier assurances that the removal of fuel subsidy and other economic reforms would reduce borrowing and improve fiscal stability.
According to Atiku, the latest figures point to a pattern of financial mismanagement, opacity and waste, adding that Nigerians were being forced to shoulder increasing debt without corresponding improvements in infrastructure, healthcare, education or security.
He also expressed concern over reports that debt servicing rose to ₦12.36 trillion, exceeding budget projections by more than 52 per cent, warning that the country’s fiscal position was becoming increasingly unsustainable.
Atiku said an ADC-led government would focus on blocking financial leakages, eliminating waste and directing public resources towards productive investments capable of stimulating economic growth and improving the welfare of Nigerians.
