Jul 25, 2026

Atiku Challenges Tinubu: Apply China Standard to $460k Forfeiture

By Afolabi Olaiya Idowu in news

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Abuja, Nigeria – July 25, 2026 — Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has fired back at the Tinubu administration, describing the Presidency’s decision to invoke China as a standard of accountability as a major strategic blunder that has only intensified public focus on President Bola Tinubu’s own past.

In a statement released Saturday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said it was ironic that while the Presidency has been showcasing a routine U.S. government reply to diplomatic correspondence as proof of innocence, its spokesman “carelessly introduced China into the debate.”

“It takes a peculiar kind of unintelligence for a spokesman to set out to drag an opponent before a hypothetical Chinese court, only to end up dragging his own principal into the dock,” the statement read.

The exchange was triggered by comments from Presidential Special Adviser on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga, who earlier stated that if Atiku were Chinese, he would be “rotting away in jail for his crimes against the Nigerian people.”

Atiku responded that anyone invoking China must accept its full standard of accountability — not selectively.

He pointed to the 1993 U.S. civil forfeiture case in which approximately $460,000 linked to accounts associated with Tinubu was forfeited to the American government in connection with allegations of narcotics trafficking and money laundering. Tinubu has consistently denied any wrongdoing, and no criminal conviction was recorded.

“China is renowned for its uncompromising approach to narcotics-related offences and public accountability. It is not a jurisdiction where the forfeiture of suspicious proceeds ordinarily marks the end of official scrutiny.

More often than not, that is where scrutiny begins,” Atiku stated.

He stressed that he himself has never been indicted or convicted by any court in Nigeria or elsewhere for corruption, narcotics offences, or any criminal offense—a matter of public record.

Beyond the forfeiture issue, Atiku argued that a true application of Chinese standards would also scrutinize the current administration’s handling of the national budget, allegations of padded appropriations, and reports of a fake government agency that allegedly received public funds.

“Not in China would a President sign into law a national budget immersed in scandals… Not in China would a President look the other way while a senior presidential aide faces grave allegations of creating a fake government agency,” the statement continued.

He further criticised the government for campaigning on “Renewed Hope” while, in his view, delivering “renewed hardship.”

Atiku also dismissed the Presidency’s use of U.S. diplomatic correspondence as a form of judicial acquittal, calling such exchanges routine between sovereign governments and neither a court judgment nor a certificate of innocence.

The latest exchange forms part of a wider war of words between the two political camps as Nigeria moves closer to the 2027 general elections.

Both sides have revisited decades-old U.S. records — Tinubu’s 1993 civil forfeiture and earlier reports linked to Atiku — in efforts to shape public perception.

Atiku urged the Tinubu administration to shift focus from “manufacturing diversions” to addressing economic hardship, insecurity, and institutional decline.

He also called for higher standards in public communication, noting that while propaganda may dominate a news cycle, facts ultimately prevail.

As the political temperature rises, Nigerians continue to watch how both camps navigate historical controversies while the country grapples with pressing contemporary challenges.