Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has launched a sharp attack on President Bola Tinubu, calling on the administration to abandon political posturing and focus on Nigeria’s worsening economic and security crises.
This followed remarks made by President Tinubu during an audience with the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria in Abuja, where he reportedly declared his readiness to “wrestle” his political rivals “to the finishing point” ahead of the 2027 general election.
Urging the President to prioritise governance over early campaign battles, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate stated that the administration’s performance, rather than opposition figures, poses its greatest challenge.
“His greatest opponent is his own record. 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,” Atiku said.
He further pointed out that elections are decided by voters rather than political bravado:
“Democracy is a marketplace of ideas and accountability. Governments earn another term through competence, compassion and measurable results, not through combative rhetoric.
“In 2027, Nigerians will not be stepping into a wrestling arena. They will be stepping into polling units to deliver a constitutional verdict,” he noted, adding: “The Nigerian people are not looking for a wrestler. They are looking for a leader. History will not remember who shouted the loudest. It will remember who governed the best.”
The statement, issued on Wednesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, accused the government of resorting to theatrical declarations to mask its shortcomings.
“These are the words of a drowning man. A government that has little to celebrate inevitably seeks refuge in chest-thumping,” the statement read.
“But Nigerians are no longer interested in political performances. They are interested in performance in government. Empty slogans cannot fill empty stomachs. Boastful declarations cannot lower food prices. Threats against political opponents cannot restore the value of the naira.”
Atiku insisted that the government should focus its energies on combating record inflation, mounting unemployment, food shortages, and the collapse of security across rural farming hubs and major transport routes.
“Mr President, you are a drowning man. Wrestle with your failures, not your opponents,” Atiku declared.
“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.”