Atiku tackles Tinubu over PFIPC scandal

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has attacked President Bola Tinubu over the controversy surrounding the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), an institution deemed a sham by the government.

Atiku called on President Tinubu to apologize to Nigerians and resign over what he described as an attempt to cover up the PFIPC accounts scandal.

His request follows conflicting testimony from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation OAGF.

In a statement on Wednesday by Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications, Phrank Shaibu, Presidential Candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) said the CBN testimony before the House of Representatives essentially contradicts the narrative previously put forward by the OAGF, thereby plunging the Tinubu government into one of the most severe credibility crises in the history of Nigerian democracy.

He insisted that the president owed the Nigerian people an apology and had lost his moral authority to remain in office if he failed to take action.

“President Tinubu owes the Nigerian people an apology for presiding over this unprecedented collapse of public accountability. If he cannot immediately restore public confidence through a truly independent investigation and ensure that all those responsible are held accountable, then he has lost the moral authority to continue in office. His honorable path is simple: apologize to the Nigerian people and resign,” he said.

The former Vice President said he could only sympathize with President Tinubu, adding that no serious leader needed a fortune teller to know that his administration was caught in a web of deception.

“When two of the most sensitive financial and monetary authorities openly contradict each other over the same transactions, no serious leader needs an oracle to know that his administration is caught in a web of deception and a deep crisis of credibility. The president cannot continue to watch from the sidelines while his administration is torn apart by conflicting narratives,” he said.

Atiku insisted that Tinubu must clarify which accounts he believed, and warned that his continued silence would deepen public suspicion.

“If he doesn’t believe either, why doesn’t he act? Every day he delays the order to conduct a truly independent investigation, he deepens the public’s suspicion that preserving his government’s image takes precedence over establishing the truth,” he said.

He also blamed the Attorney General of the Federation for remaining silent on the issue, describing it as a factor that exacerbated the crisis.

He called on the National Assembly to immediately summon the Accountant General of the Federation and the Governor of the Central Bank to appear together before the investigative committee under oath so that Nigerians can finally hear one true account of the transactions.

“The PFIPC scandal is no longer just a dispute over accounts. It has become a referendum on President Tinubu’s integrity and competence. If there is one individual who allegedly orchestrated a scheme that has thrown Nigeria’s two most important financial and monetary authorities into public contradiction, Nigerians can rightfully ask how many other abuses may have escaped detection due to lax oversight and institutional failures,” he said.