Atiku denies quitting active politics, accuses govt of sponsoring narrative
Former Nigerian Vice President and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general election, Atiku Abubakar, has denied rumours of him quiting politics.
He said the circulating rumour of his retirement from active politics was propagated by anti-democratic elements unsettled by a growing national consensus to rescue Nigeria from the failures of the current administration.
In a statement on X (formerly Twitter) by his media aide Paul Ibe, on Monday, Atiku dismissed his retirement claims as false and misleading.
“We wish to state, for the record, that information circulating on social media about a purported meeting of His Excellency, Atiku Abubakar, with stakeholders of the African Democratic Congress, in which the former Vice President allegedly decided to ‘step aside and retire from active politics,’ is entirely false and deliberately misleading.
“The Waziri Adamawa has not, in recent times, held any such meeting with ADC stakeholders at the national level. The only recent engagement he had was with stakeholders of the ADC in Adamawa State last Thursday,” the statement read.
Atiku noted that major decisions regarding his political career would not emerge through unofficial channels.
“An issue as fundamental and consequential as exiting active politics cannot and would never be communicated through rumours, faceless sources, or third-party fabrication. Such a decision, if ever taken, would be formally conveyed through the Atiku Media Office.
“This latest falsehood bears all the hallmarks of a coordinated disinformation campaign designed to create confusion, dampen momentum, and mislead the Nigerian public,” he said.
The former vice president who fingered the government in the narrative, further urged supporters and party members to ignore the reports.
“Only the government and its agents could have sponsored this desperate narrative out of fear of what is coming.
“We state without equivocation that this mischief is being driven by anti-democratic elements who are deeply unsettled by the growing national consensus to rescue Nigeria from the failures of the current administration.
“We therefore urge supporters of Atiku Abubakar, members of the ADC, and all well-meaning Nigerians to disregard this fake news in its entirety and remain focused on the collective effort to reclaim and rebuild our nation,” he stated.
