The Nigerian Presidency on Thursday, July 23, 2026, sharply criticized former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for allegedly spending $1.2 million to engage American lobbyists to petition US President Donald Trump and the US State Department over a 1993 civil forfeiture case involving President Bola Tinubu.
President Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, issued a strongly worded statement titled “When Atiku Abubakar Reports Himself to President Trump,” describing Atiku’s action as an inappropriate attempt to externalize Nigeria’s domestic politics and undermine national sovereignty.
Onanuga accused Atiku, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, of diminishing his stature as an elder statesman through “reckless public statements and desperate political manoeuvres.”
He noted that the 1993 matter was a long-settled civil case with no criminal conviction, already litigated and resolved by Nigerian electoral mandates and court rulings.
The statement emphasized that Nigeria is a sovereign nation, not subject to foreign interference, and that reviving the old issue insults the intelligence of Nigerians who elected President Tinubu.
Onanuga further countered by referencing Atiku’s own past scrutiny in the United States, including his prominent mention in a 2010 US Senate investigation into foreign corruption.
The report allegedly detailed how Atiku and his then-wife used offshore companies to move suspect funds, including bribes, into the US.
“If Atiku Abubakar were a Chinese, he would be rotting away in jail for his crimes against the Nigerian people,” Onanuga declared in the statement.
The Presidency urged Atiku to respect the country he seeks to lead and focus on domestic issues rather than seeking foreign intervention in Nigerian politics.
This exchange highlights the ongoing political rivalry between the ruling party and the opposition ahead of future elections.
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