Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has challenged the Federal Government to investigate and prosecute him if it has evidence linking him to the alleged $16 billion expenditure on power projects during his tenure in government.
Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, accused the Bola Tinubu administration of reviving old allegations against him in an attempt to divert public attention from questions surrounding the management of revenues generated following the removal of the petrol subsidy.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the renewed focus on power-sector projects, privatisation and public assets was aimed at shifting attention away from the economic hardship facing Nigerians.
He also demanded greater accountability from the Federal Government over the revenues accrued since the removal of the petrol subsidy, asking, “Where is the people’s money?”
Atiku argued that allegations against him had been repeatedly investigated over the years without resulting in prosecution, despite successive administrations having access to the state’s investigative institutions.
“The National Assembly investigated the power projects. I was never invited to answer any allegation of wrongdoing.
“Yes, I chaired the National Council on Privatisation as vice president. But on the power project, I disagreed with its concept and did not preside over its implementation. The responsible minister did. The same applies to the Aluminium Smelter matter,” he said.
The former vice president said he had consistently invited authorities to investigate him, noting that he left office in 2007 and had spent much of the intervening period in opposition to successive governments.
“I have repeatedly asked to be investigated. I left office in 2007 and have spent much of the period since then opposing governments in power. If there is evidence that I stole public money, why has no government produced it before a court?
“It is still not too late. Investigate me. Invite me. Produce the evidence. Prosecute me if you have a case. But propaganda cannot substitute for evidence,” the statement added.
Atiku’s comments come amid heightened political tensions between the opposition and the Federal Government over the state of the economy and the impact of the administration’s reforms.
The former vice president has made the economic consequences of petrol subsidy removal a major focus of his criticism of the Tinubu administration. He has argued that Nigerians have faced sharp increases in petrol, transportation, food and other essential costs without receiving commensurate benefits from the additional government revenue.
According to Atiku, the renewed controversy over the power projects is an attempt to distract from his demand for transparency and accountability over the funds generated after subsidy removal.
“They removed subsidy from the poor and promised that the sacrifice would free resources for development. Nigerians accepted extraordinary pain on that promise.
“Today, petrol is more expensive, transportation is more expensive, food is more expensive and the purchasing power of the Nigerian worker has been devastated,” he added.
