The presidency revealed on Saturday that Atiku Abubakar, the People’s Democratic Party’s (PDP) presidential candidate for 2023, is still reeling from the “shock of defeat he suffered” in the election.
Dele Alake, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s special adviser on special duties, communications, and strategy, said in a statement that the former vice president was “making spurious and wild allegations aimed at disparaging and discrediting an important arm of government that should serve as the bulwark of our democracy.”
the statement is in response to an allegation by Paul Ibe, Abubakar’s media aide, that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and Tinubu’s agents have “ceaselessly chosen to stand in the way of justice by making “catastrophic threats to anarchy if justice is not served according to their whims.”
The APC, for its part, called the charge “arrant nonsense,” claiming that the PDP candidate was attempting to “deflect the shame of a highly likely defeat” in the presidential electoral tribunal by making “mischievous allegations.”
According to Alake, Abubakar did not present any compelling evidence to back up his accusations about how the Tinubu administration and the APC intended to “undercut, undermine, and compromise the judiciary.”
“In the ill-conceived and illogical statement, Alhaji Atiku accused the current administration of the ruling APC of plotting to undermine the judiciary without providing any shred of evidence.”
“Aside from innuendos, insinuations, and outright lies contained in the aforementioned press statement, former Vice President Atiku failed to present any convincing argument to support his claims about how the President Tinubu-led administration and APC sought to undercut, undermine, and compromise the judiciary.”
“If, as claimed, the former Vice President believes in democracy and the sanctity of the Judiciary, he would not engage in making baseless and outrageous allegations aimed at disparaging and discrediting an important arm of government that should serve as a bulwark for our democracy.”
“Even though he is a party in a case before the presidential election tribunal, he shamelessly resorted to this cheap attempt to intimidate and blackmail the judiciary.”
“Let it be said that when it comes to fighting for democracy and democratic ideals, the rule of law, and judicial independence in Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu stands head and shoulders above Atiku Abubakar.” When President Tinubu was governor of Lagos state from 1999 and 2007, under a PDP central administration, he led the struggle against the emasculation of the judiciary and promoted the sanctity of the rule of law as a foundation for good governance. Alhaji Atiku was nowhere to be found.
“It is on record and to his eternal credit that President Tinubu, through the use of the law and the judiciary, successfully challenged many of the PDP-led federal government’s draconian and obnoxious decisions that trampled on the rights of the states as federating units.” Lagos State, led by then-governor Tinubu, won 13 lawsuits all the way to the Supreme Court against the hydra-headed PDP administration at the center.
“No leader with President Tinubu’s sterling and enviable credentials as a champion of the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary will ever consider undermining the Judiciary as alleged by Alhaji Atiku.”
“President Tinubu won an election that was free, fair, and credible.” The presidential election that produced him on February 25th, 2023 was the most transparent election ever held in Nigeria since 1999.
“President Tinubu and the APC have no reason to undermine the judiciary in the hope of obtaining a favorable ruling.”
“His lawyers, as well as those of the APC, have presented a very solid defense of the election result, and we are confident that the judiciary will deliver its ruling impartially on the basis of points of law and evidence before it, rather than on presumptuous speculations and unfounded accusations.”
“Atiku Abubakar, as a statesman, should be honorable enough to allow the judiciary to perform its sacred duty without harassment and this resort to self-help.” Attempting to denigrate a vital state institution for selfish political gain is dishonest, shameful, and unworthy of a former vice president of Nigeria. This desperate behavior must end.”
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