Former Vice President and 2027 presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has raised the alarm over reports that some young Nigerians are resorting to selling their kidneys to cope with the country’s worsening economic hardship.

Atiku, in a post on X on Friday, described the reported trend as one of the most disturbing indications of the desperation facing young Nigerians amid the rising cost of living.

He said young people were increasingly being pushed into desperate choices simply to survive.

“I have heard disturbing stories about the extent to which young Nigerians are being driven simply to survive. Perhaps the most horrifying are the growing reports of young people selling parts of their bodies: kidneys in particular, in desperate attempts to raise money,” he said.

Atiku stressed that Nigerian youths should be using their talents, ideas and creativity to build their futures rather than selling their body organs.

“Young people should be selling dreams, ideas and innovation, not their body organs,” he said.

According to him, the situation reflects the severity of the economic crisis confronting Nigerians, warning that extreme hardship can make unthinkable choices appear to be viable options.

“When the cost-of-living crisis becomes unbearable, desperation begins to make the unthinkable appear like an option,” Atiku said.

He blamed the rising prices of essential goods and services on the economic policies of the President Bola Tinubu administration.

“In Tinubu’s Nigeria, almost everything required to live with dignity is becoming more expensive by the day: food, transport, rent, school fees, medicine and electricity,” he said.

Atiku also cited reports that some young Nigerians were allegedly being offered as little as ₦1.7 million for their kidneys, describing the development as heartbreaking.

“Yet young Nigerians are reportedly being driven to sell their kidneys for as little as N1.7 million. That should break the heart of a nation,” he said.

He said young Nigerians should instead be focused on building careers, establishing businesses, raising families and pursuing their aspirations.

“When young Nigerians begin to see their kidneys as emergency savings, we are no longer talking about ordinary economic hardship. We are talking about desperation at its most frightening,” he said.

Atiku acknowledged that Nigerian laws prohibit commercial organ sales and trafficking but argued that legislation alone could not tackle the poverty and desperation that leave vulnerable citizens exposed to criminal networks.

“Nigeria already has laws prohibiting commercial organ sales and organ trafficking. But laws alone cannot cure the poverty and desperation that make vulnerable young people easy prey for criminal networks,” he said.

He further criticised the Federal Government’s economic reforms, insisting that policies aimed at transforming the economy must also protect the welfare of ordinary Nigerians.

“No government should celebrate ‘reforms’ while young Nigerians are being reduced to selling parts of themselves to eat, pay rent, settle school fees or survive,” Atiku said.

He called for economic policies that would deliver affordable food, cheaper transportation, accessible healthcare, decent employment and renewed hope for young Nigerians.

“Our young people should be selling their ideas, talents and innovation to the world and not their kidneys for ₦1.7 million just to survive at home,” he said.

“This is the human cost of Nigeria’s cost-of-living crisis,” Atiku added.

His comments come amid recent reports and unverified claims of alleged organ trafficking in parts of the country.