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Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of hypocrisy, historical distortion, and political desperation.
In a statement by his spokesperson, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku described Tinubu’s recent remarks as a “reckless tirade” that exposes “a troubling pattern of hypocrisy and historical amnesia.”
DAILY POST reports that President Tinubu had chided Atiku over his credentials and his handling of the country’s economy during his tenure as vice president.
Reacting, the former vice president expressed astonishment that a president who has faced persistent questions over his own credentials would attempt to discredit others with well-documented records of public service.
“Atiku Abubakar’s attention has been drawn to the latest reckless tirade by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu—a performance that exposes not just desperation, but a troubling pattern of hypocrisy and historical amnesia,” the statement read.
Speaking on the country’s privatization, Atiku’s camp said President Tinubu’s criticism collapses under scrutiny, recalling that the president had previously opposed the very reforms he now appears to be implementing.
Atiku had long advocated the privatization of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the sale of refineries to credible private investors—a position Tinubu reportedly resisted at the time.
However, the statement argued that the current administration is now presiding over a system that has effectively commercialized the national oil company “in opacity—without clear valuation, without transparency, and with lingering questions over who truly benefits.”
“This is not reform; it is privatization without accountability,” Atiku stated.
“It is not our fault that the president does not and cannot read, because Bola Tinubu has a history of attending a school in Lagos two years before it was founded, upon which he claimed his Chicago State University degree.
“If he were properly educated, he would have acquainted himself with the privatization records in the presidency or the painstaking account of these reforms as captured by Mallam Nasir El-Rufai in The Accidental Public Servant, where the privatization programme was clearly documented as a bold and structured effort to dismantle inefficiency and drive private sector-led growth.”
It added that Tinubu’s remarks could only have been made in ignorance of facts already laid bare in public records and credible accounts.
“You cannot oppose reform when it demands courage and then execute a shadow version of it in power,” the statement added.
2027: You’ve record of attending school two years before establishment – Atiku replies Tinubu
