Atiku Abubakar

Our attention has been drawn to comments credited to former Member of the House of Representatives, Dr. Junaid Mohammed to the effect that His Excellency, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar should add integrity to his political menu before seeking to rule Nigeria. He also went on to say that Atiku should prove to Nigerians that he has as much integrity as President Buhari before Nigerians particularly those from the north would vote for him. We are constrained to respond to this statement for two major reasons:

First, what the above statement seeks to infer is inconsistent with the person and nature of the former Vice President whose virtue of integrity seems to take the better of him, all the time. Whilst not joining issue with Dr. Mohammed, it is important for us to state that the former Vice President was already an established and flourishing businessman even before he joined the murky waters of politics which has always threatened to soil his reputation. Everyone who has ever made a success of business like Atiku has must know that INTEGRITY helps attract and maintain clientele. Ask Bill Gates or our own Aliko Dangote and they’d probably throw more lights.

Any one lacking in integrity will not endorse an institution like the EFCC, it is common knowledge that Atiku Abubakar helped in the establishment of EFCC in Nigeria with the sole aim of bringing integrity to bear on economic and financial matters and dealings. And under his watch as Vice President, the EFCC recovered excess of 4.5 billion dollars.

As Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku was offered shares in Transcorp for which he honorably declined because he felt it was unethical to accept the shares. How many of those calling him corrupt can do that? And if this isn’t integrity, then what is it?

Nigerians will recall how former Vice President Atiku frowned at the way the bill of devolution of power which is critical to the restructuring of Nigeria was thrown out of the National Assembly. He has also continued to remind the APC where he is a Chieftain that Restructuring was part of the promise it made Nigerians in the run up to the 2015 presidential election. Only a man who is full of integrity can do that, especially where several notable Nigerians shy away from talking about restructuring either because of selfishness or because they want to remain in the good books of seeming king makers. Integrity and love for Nigeria will not allow Atiku stay quiet.

Second, Atiku is in doubt that Dr. Junaid truly made the statement credited to him but if he indeed did, it must be that he was sincerely wrong about his judgment of him because he may have believed the campaign of calumny which was sponsored against him by those who were merely punishing him for opposing a third term quest. And there is the need to set the record straight.

Nigerians must know that leaders like Presidents Umaru Yaradua, Goodluck Jonathan, Muhammadu Buhari and the crop of Nigerian governors across board and indeed all lovers of Democracy have benefitted from Atiku’s fight to protect the integrity of Nigeria’s democracy by standing against a third term bid. Let me remind Nigerians that where it not for Atiku, democracy would have been long forgotten and Nigeria ridiculed not only in Africa but in the entire world. In other climes, Atiku should have been given a national recognition for this, not vilification. Atiku only takes solace in the fact that there is hardly any Nigerian politician who hasn’t been accused of corruption including those who seek to nail him.

Those pitching Atiku Abubakar against Buhari must stop as they are only being mischievous. Vice President Abubakar has not formerly indicated his interest to run and if he does, he has sufficient expertise, patriotism and blue print to bring Nigeria to an exalted place in the comity of nations.

Signed Director, Communication Strategy, To Atiku Abubakar