The Arewa Professionals for Democracy and Development (APDD) has launched a scathing attack on former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, urging him to quit politics due to his “diminished capacity” to analyze national issues.

In a press statement released on November 22, 2024, the APDD criticized Atiku’s recent condemnation of President Bola Tinubu’s administration for seeking external borrowing of $2.21 billion.

The group described Atiku’s criticism as “spasmodic” and “ignorant of key aspects of economic management and development.”

The APDD also accused Atiku of attempting to “project his own values on the incumbent government” by implying that the loans would be embezzled.

The group pointed out that President Tinubu has assured transparency and accountability in using the funds, which should have been Atiku’s focus instead of “infantile tantrums.”

Furthermore, the APDD challenged Atiku to deny his alleged role in benefiting from the commission on loan repayment during the Obasanjo administration, which he once falsely claimed to have headed.

The group concluded by urging Atiku to accept that his advanced age and serial losses at the polls imply that he no longer possesses the mental acuity to analyze national issues. “It is time for Atiku to quit politics and refrain from intervening in national issues,” the APDD stated.

“We observed that Atiku, while condemning the loan, described the legislature in unsavory terms, saying: ‘the National Assembly has become an accomplice once more’. If Atiku can vilify the National Assembly for performing its constitutional role as an opposition figure it means he would obliterate the separation of powers enshrined in the constitution if he were president,” the statement co-signed by Engr. Moses Odaudu and Comrade Adamu Matazu said.

“For us, Atiku’s criticism of the borrowing’s approval is spasmodic. It mirrors the fitful twitching of an expired creature in its final throes, like the Atiku’s political career, which is rapidly dying regardless of the amount of populist posturing he puts up to regain relevance.

“Atiku’s criticism of the loan ignores key aspects of economic management and development. While it is important to scrutinise government actions, it is equally important to consider the broader context and potential benefits of these loans.

“He blatantly trivialised the strategic intent behind the loans by asserting that they are bone-crushing and bring insufferable pressure on the economy whereas when properly managed and invested in critical infrastructure and development projects, the loans can stimulate economic growth, create jobs, and improve public services.

“We believe what Atiku did was to project his value on the incumbent government with the implication that he concluded the loans would be embezzled because that is what would have happened if he were the president.

“This is even as President Tinubu has assured that his government will ensure transparency and accountability in using these funds, which should have been Atiku’s focus instead of the infantile tantrums he threw in the public opinion space. This is why we ask the former vice president to differentiate between constructive criticism aimed at improving governance and baseless accusations that can undermine public trust in Nigeria.

“Furthermore, we noticed that Atiku’s criticism overlooked the complexities of international finance and the strategic decisions involved in securing favourable terms of borrowing, which caused him to dwell on the comparison of exchange rates while suggesting that the loans are poorly negotiated. Only such mischief made him deny the administration’s efforts to boost revenue collection through reforms in the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and Customs as part of a broader strategy to enhance fiscal stability.

“In his desperate drive for public validation, it is tragic that Atiku unashamedly references something that should be forgotten by saying the administration of President Obasanjo, under which he was vice president, took the country out of foreign indebtedness, without telling Nigerians the truth.

“We challenge Atiku to deny that he was not a beneficiary of the commission on the loan repayment shared by Obasanjo’s economic team, which the former vice president once falsely claimed to have headed.

“We conclude by urging Alhaji Atiku Abubakar to accept that the trauma of serial loss at the polls and his advanced age imply that he no longer possesses the mental acuity he had for analysing national issues a couple of decades ago.

“Atiku must thus admit to himself that it is time to quit politics and refrain from intervening in national issues so that he does not allow his diminished capacity to lead some Nigerians astray.”