Atiku’s U.S. lobby, petitions to Trump threat to Nigeria’s sovereignty – Presidency

The Presidency on Thursday accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of attempting to internationalise Nigeria’s domestic politics through lobbying efforts in the United States of America and questioned his legal history in the country.

In a statement titled “When Will Atiku Abubakar Report Himself to President Trump?”,

 the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, criticised Atiku over reports that a US-based lobbying group acting on his behalf had submitted petitions to US President Donald Trump, the US State Department and members of the US Congress concerning President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

According to Onanuga, the petitions revive issues relating to a 1993 civil forfeiture case involving President Tinubu, which he said had long been resolved without any criminal conviction or finding of guilt.

He said the matter had been settled decades ago and was subsequently addressed during Nigeria’s 2023 presidential election and related court proceedings, including at the Supreme Court.

The presidential spokesman maintained that, taking complaints about Nigeria’s president to foreign leaders was inappropriate and inconsistent with the conduct expected of a former vice president and elder statesman.

“It is important to remind Atiku and his associates that Nigeria is a sovereign nation, not a satellite of any foreign power,” he said, adding that domestic political disagreements should be resolved within Nigeria’s democratic institutions rather than through foreign lobbying.

While acknowledging that lobbying is a recognised feature of American politics, he argued that engaging foreign lobbyists to circulate what he described as “discredited documents” against a sitting Nigerian President amounted to an effort to undermine the country’s sovereignty.

The Presidency also challenged Atiku to explain what it described as his own legal history in the United States.

He alleged that Atiku was prominently featured in investigations connected with the William Jefferson bribery scandal and cited a 2010 report by the US Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations titled Keeping Foreign Corruption Out of the United States: Four Case Histories.

He said the report documented alleged financial transactions involving offshore companies and suspect funds linked to Atiku. The statement did not indicate that the former Vice President had been convicted of any criminal offence in relation to those matters.

He urged Atiku should clarify his legal standing in the United States instead of focusing attention on President Tinubu.

Onanuga accused the former Vice President of allowing his long-standing ambition to become Nigeria’s President to overshadow what he described as the restrai

nt and dignity expected of a politician.

He alleged that Atiku’s continued pursuit of the presidency was driven by personal interests rather than national considerations, claiming that revisiting allegations previously raised during the 2023 election campaign would not improve his prospects in the 2027 presidential election.

The statement also revisited criticisms of Nigeria’s privatisation programme implemented during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, when Atiku served as Vice President.

Onanuga alleged that the programme resulted in the sale of national assets to politically connected individuals at undervalued prices, leading to widespread job losses and unpaid salaries and pensions.

He said that the current administration was still addressing the consequences of those policies.

Onanuga said President Tinubu remained focused on implementing his Renewed Hope Agenda, stressing that the administration was concentrating on economic reforms, investment attraction, national security and improving Nigeria’s international standing instead of responding to political attacks.

He described Atiku’s actions as political theatrics and maintained that the challenges facing Nigeria required policy engagement and practical solutions rather than lobbying efforts abroad.