By Jude Opara
The All Progressives Congress (APC) on Thursday warned Nigerians against allowing former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, to gain control of the national treasury, alleging that his past is replete with cases of bribery and corruption.
The National Publicity Secretary (NPS) of the party, Barr. Felix Morka, in a statement made available to journalists, alleged that Atiku had been involved in dealings both at home and abroad that ended in scandals.
According to Morka, the ADC presidential candidate is already being haunted by his past, which he said raises questions about whether he should be trusted with control of the national treasury. He added that the forthcoming 2027 general elections provide an opportunity for Nigerians to reject him.
“Ghosts of his sordid past continue, restlessly, to haunt and warn that Atiku must never again be allowed anywhere close to such a commanding position of trust and responsibility as the presidency.
“As a former public official, Atiku’s record is an executive summary of some of Nigeria’s vilest episodes of corruption and cronyism that pulverized our economy and decimated public trust.
“Nigeria’s upcoming presidential election presents the electorate the opportunity to deal a final blow to Atiku’s desperate quest for presidential power, and save the country from his ravenous plunder.
“From the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project and the Siemens bribery scandal to the William Jefferson case, the PTDF funds controversy, and the US Senate investigation into suspicious financial transactions, Atiku’s name is engraved ingloriously on files and dossiers of onshore and offshore financial scandals and atrocities.
“These are not mere allegations. They are matters that are well documented in official records, tribunal proceedings, government investigations, national and foreign legislative reports, and international financial inquiries. Together, they raise legitimate questions about the fitness for probity and accountability of this serial presidential contender.”
The statement alleged that the controversy surrounding the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project was troubling because of a $500,000 payment allegedly made by a contractor, Sunrise Power, to an account linked to Atiku’s former wife, Jennifer Douglas.
“The latest controversy surrounding the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project is particularly troubling. An International Chamber of Commerce Arbitration Tribunal in Paris examined a $500,000 payment made in January 2003 by Leno Adesanya, promoter of Sunrise Power, to Jennifer Douglas, Atiku’s wife at the time, through an offshore company.
“Reportedly, the payment occurred around the period when the Mambilla contract was awarded, with Atiku as Vice President. Atiku declined an opportunity to explain and justify what clearly was an illegal bribe payment to his wife.
“There was the Siemens bribery scandal in which US authorities alleged that Siemens paid at least $4.5 million in bribes to secure Nigerian telecommunications contracts during the Obasanjo administration, with approximately $2.8 million reportedly passing through a bank account owned by Jennifer Douglas, Atiku’s ex-wife. Siemens subsequently agreed to pay approximately $1.6 billion in penalties to US and German authorities over global bribery violations. Again, Atiku’s Vice Presidential soiled fingerprints in focus.
“And there was the William Jefferson bribery case, with Atiku and his close associates falling under the scrutiny of American investigators. US court records indicated that former Congressman William Jefferson disclosed paying Atiku $100,000 to influence a proposed business partnership involving iGate and Netlink Digital Television. Jefferson was eventually convicted and sentenced to prison. Again, Atiku’s dark web of corrupt influence peddling and abuse of office on display.
“The 2010 report of the US Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations that linked Atiku and his ex-wife, Jennifer Douglas, to more than $40 million in suspicious funds transferred into the United States through offshore companies and lodged in over 30 shadowy bank accounts associated with his ex-wife, Jennifer Douglas, and her family again tells a sordid tale of a man who cannot be trusted with the nation’s treasury.”
The APC further claimed that Atiku’s recent declaration that he would restore the fuel subsidy if elected was a ploy to gain access to the national treasury.
“Atiku’s sudden U-turn from his 2023 policy position in favour of fuel subsidy removal to his new promise to restore the fuel subsidy regime, if elected, must be understood as his latest device to lay his hands on, and squander, the country’s 18-year foreign reserve high of over $54 billion built up from $3 billion by President Bola Tinubu in less than four years.”
Morka also referred Nigerians to comments attributed to former President Olusegun Obasanjo in his book, My Watch, in which he allegedly described Atiku, his former vice president, as having a propensity for corruption and a tendency towards disloyalty, among other negative remarks.
Never miss a moment! Get the stories shaping Nigeria, delivered straight to your phone. Follow Peoplesdaily Newspaper on WhatsApp for breaking news, exclusive reports, and the headlines everyone will be talking about, before anyone else.
