Atiku Responds to Claims of Hardship Under Tinubu’s Presidency

Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, stated that Nigerians are experiencing the most challenging period under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.

He made the comment through a statement issued by his spokesperson, Phrank Shaibu, on Wednesday.

The remarks come after Tinubu’s government issued statements that sought to downplay the hardship and insecurity confronting Nigerians.

Atiku responded by condemning the Presidency’s recent attempt to blame the media for the country’s escalating insecurity and economic hardship, calling it a dangerous exercise in denial by an administration that is becoming increasingly detached from the realities faced by ordinary Nigerians.

He added that hunger has become a defining characteristic of the Tinubu administration.

“The latest comments from the presidency reveal a disturbing disconnect between those who govern and the people they govern. Nigerians are enduring one of the most difficult periods in our recent history, yet instead of acknowledging their pain and outlining practical solutions, the government is attempting to persuade citizens that what they see, hear, and experience every day is somehow an illusion created by the media.”

“The father who goes to bed wondering how to provide the next meal for his family does not need a newspaper report to confirm hardship. The mother who now pays three or four times more for basic food items than she did two years ago does not require a television broadcast to understand inflation. The small business owner whose capital has been wiped out, the graduate trapped in unemployment, and the pensioner whose savings have become worthless do not need media interpretation to understand their circumstances.”

“To suggest that this suffering is exaggerated is to mock the lived experiences of millions of Nigerians. It is to tell citizens that their empty pockets, unpaid bills, and empty kitchens are products of imagination.”

“The media did not invent the killings in Benue. The media did not invent the massacres in Plateau. The media did not invent the bandit attacks in Zamfara, Katsina, and Niger. The media did not invent the abduction of school children and teachers in Oyo. The media did not invent kidnapping-for-ransom, which has become one of the country’s fastest-growing criminal enterprises. The media did not invent terrorism, nor did it create the criminal gangs that continue to terrorise communities and disrupt economic activities across the nation.”