Atiku Tells Tinubu: Stop Blaming Nigerians For Insecurity

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has knocked the President Bola Tinubu-led government over its handling of insecurity and economic hardship.
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Atiku accused the Presidency of attempting to shift responsibility for the country’s worsening conditions onto the media and ordinary Nigerians.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku described as alarming recent remarks from the presidency suggesting that many kidnapping incidents occur because citizens ignore police warnings against travelling at night.

He argued that such reasoning amounted to an admission that Nigerians could only be safe for a limited part of the day.

“Is the presidency admitting that Nigerians can only be safe for a few hours of the day? Is this an official declaration that Africa’s largest economy has been reduced to an eight-hour economy where citizens must shut down their businesses, abandon legitimate travel, and retreat indoors once the sun sets?” Atiku asked.

Atiku said it was unacceptable for government officials to place the burden of security on citizens rather than on agencies responsible for protecting lives and property.

“The primary duty of any government is the protection of lives and property. Citizens do not surrender their freedoms in exchange for curfews imposed by fear,” he said.

He maintained that insecurity across the country was evident in the daily experiences of Nigerians and could not be dismissed as media exaggeration.

Atiku cited killings in Benue and Plateau states, bandit attacks in Zamfara, Katsina and Niger states, as well as recurring kidnappings and terrorism across several parts of the country.

“A trader travelling from Kano to Lagos, a businessman returning from Abuja to Kaduna, a farmer transporting produce to market, or a family embarking on a legitimate journey should not be blamed when criminals attack them. The blame belongs squarely where it should — on those charged with securing the country,” he said.

“A nation cannot prosper when its people are told that safety ends at sunset. Economies grow because people can move freely, trade freely, and conduct lawful activities without fear,” he stated.

Beyond insecurity, Atiku accused the administration of being disconnected from the economic realities facing Nigerians, saying hunger and hardship had become defining features of the current government.

According to him, rising food prices, worsening inflation, unemployment and declining purchasing power have left millions of families struggling to survive.

“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,” he said.

He also faulted what he described as the presidency’s attempt to blame the media for highlighting insecurity and economic challenges, insisting that journalists were merely reporting realities already being experienced by citizens.

“Blaming journalists for reporting insecurity and hardship is like blaming a thermometer for a fever,” Atiku said.

He warned that governments lose credibility when they focus on managing narratives instead of addressing underlying problems.

Tinubu, Atiku

“Nigeria does not need explanations for suffering. Nigeria needs solutions. Nigeria does not need lectures about perception. Nigeria needs results,” he added.

The statement comes amid growing public concern over the rising cost of living and persistent security challenges across parts of the country, issues that have dominated national discourse since the removal of fuel subsidy and the floating of the naira by the Tinubu-led government.
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EFCC to Arraign Bodejo For Alleged $2.530m Terrorism Financing, Money Laundering Offences

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC is set to arraign Bello Abdullahi Bodejo before a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja over allegations bordering on terrorism financing and money laundering to the tune of $2.530 million.
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The EFCC, on Monday, June 22, 2026 filed a twelve-count charge before the Federal High Court against Bodejo, alleging him of receiving and possessing large sums of cash in foreign currency linked to proceeds of unlawful activities in contravention of the Money Laundering( Prevention & Prohibition) Act, 2011.

Bodejo, linked to Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, is expected to take his plea before the court in the coming days as the Commission commences formal proceedings.

Count one of the charges read: “That you, BELLO ABDULLAHI BODEJO (mele adult), on or about the 11th day of January 2022, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did knowingly and willfully, without lawful authority or excuse, accept a payment of the sum of One Hundred Thousand United States Dollars (USD $100,000) in physical currency from one SA’IDU ABUBAKAR, a former Accountant-General Bauchi State who is currently in the lawful custody of the Nigerian Police Force, which exceeded the statutory cash transaction threshold of Five Million Naira GN5,000,000.00) prescribed under Section 1(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) without routing the said transaction through a financial institution as required by law, and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 16(1)(d) of the Money Laundering Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 16(2)(b) of the same Act.”

Count two reads: “That you, BELLO ABDULLAHI BODEIO (male adult), on or about the 21st day of January 2022, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did knowingly and willfully, without lawful authority or excuse, accept a payment of the sum of Two Hundred Thousand United States Dollars (USD $200,00) in physical currency from one SA’IDU ABUBAKAR, a former Accountant-General of Bauchi State who is currently in the lawful custody of the Nigerian Police Force, which exceeded the statutory cash transaction threshold of Five Million Naira GN5,000,000.00) prescribed under Section 1(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended), without routing the said transaction through a financial institution as required by law, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 16(1)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 16(2)(b) of the same Act.”

Another count alleges that on March 20, 2024, Bodejo received $500,000 in physical cash from the same source, an amount said to have exceeded the legal cash transaction threshold prescribed under the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

Count four reads, “That you, BELLO ABDULLAHI BODEJO (male adult), on or about the 7th day of February 2024, at Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did knowingly and willfully, without lawful authority or excuse, accept a cash payment of the sum of Nine Hundred and Eighty Thousand United States Dollars (USD $980,000.00) in physical currency from one SA’IDU ABUBAKAR, a former Accountant-General of Bauchi State who is currently in the lawful custody of the Nigerian Police Force which sum exceeded the statutory cash transaction threshold of Five Million Naira (5,000,000.00) prescribed under Section 2(1)(a) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, without routing the said transaction through a financial institution as required by law, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 19(1)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and punishable under Section 19(2 )(b) of the same Act.”

EFCC

According to count ten, Bello Abdullahi Bodejo allegedly took possession of $980,000 in Abuja on or about February 7, 2024, under circumstances in which he either knew, or reasonably ought to have known, that the funds were proceeds of unlawful activity, specifically money laundering. The conduct allegedly constitutes an offence under Section 18(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and is punishable under Section 18(3) of the same Act.

All the alleged offences are punishable under various provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended), and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

Further proceedings are expected to follow as the Commission awaits the arraignment date.
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ADC: Onanuga “No Hunger” Comments Reflect Tinubu’s Disconnection From Reality

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused the Tinubu administration of grave insensitivity, following comments by Presidential Spokesman Bayo Onanuga that he does not see the level of hunger and hardship being reported across the country.
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In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said Onanuga’s views reflect the dominant thinking in the Tinubu-led government, which it said confirms its long-standing position that the administration is disconnected from the reality faced by millions of ordinary Nigerians.

The full statement read:

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has condemned recent comments by Presidential Spokesman, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, claiming that he does not see the level of hunger and hardship Nigerians are talking about. Those comments are not merely insensitive; they are a startling admission of how disconnected the APC government has become from the realities of the people it governs.

When over 80% of Nigerians are struggling to feed their families, pay school fees, afford transportation and keep their businesses alive, it is extraordinary that a senior presidential spokesman can publicly suggest that the hardship is somehow overstated or even contrived.

The truth is that Nigerians are not faking their suffering. The unprecedented cost-of-living crisis confronting the country today is the direct result of the ill-conceived and poorly executed economic policies of the Tinubu administration, which have thrown millions more into acute poverty since this government came to power. Food prices have soared, transportation costs have multiplied, the value of incomes and savings has been eroded, and millions of Nigerians who were managing before are now trapped in economic distress.

This is not opposition propaganda. It is the daily lived experience of ordinary Nigerians in every state of the federation.
What makes Mr. Onanuga’s comments particularly troubling is that they reveal a government that has become tragically insular and could no longer do anything differently. A sensible government does not measure the effects of its policies by merely looking at the people within its immediate circle or driving through paved roads.

It must listen to the people in the markets, on the farms, in the classrooms, in the workshops and in the streets. If the Presidency genuinely cannot see the hunger and hardship that Nigerians are talking about, then it raises serious questions about whether it sees the people at all.
The APC government will undoubtedly point to roads infrastructure projects as its achievements. While even this is debatable, the fact remains that Nigerians cannot eat roads.

The first responsibility of any government is to create economic conditions in which citizens can afford food, find jobs, run businesses and live with dignity. On this most fundamental test, the Tinubu administration has failed. After three years of promises, excuses and appeals for patience, the reality for 62% of Nigerians is that life is harder today than it was when this government took office.

The ADC believes that leadership begins with honesty. The question is no longer whether Nigerians are suffering; Nigerians already know that they are. The real question is whether this government is prepared to acknowledge the consequences of its policies and accept responsibility for its historic failures.

ADC

Until it does, comments such as those made by Mr. Onanuga will only reinforce the growing perception that the APC government is out of touch with the people and unwilling to confront the damage its economic policies have inflicted on ordinary Nigerians.
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Signed:

Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, National Publicity Secretary, African Democratic Congress (ADC)