The Tinubu/Shettima Presidential Campaign Council of the All Pro­gressives Congress (APC) and the Atiku/Okowa Presidential Cam­paign Organisation of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Monday traded words over between Atiku Abubakar and Bola Tinubu who is supposed to step down.
The Tinubu/Shettima Presiden­tial Campaign Council asked Ati­ku Abubakar, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to reconsider his ambition to run for president and apologise to the nation over the brewing ‘Spe­cial Purpose Vehicle (SPV)’ scandal.
The APC Presidential Campaign Council equally called for Atiku’s arrest and prosecution over alleged in­fraction of the law bordering on criminal breach of trust, conspiracy, code of conduct for public officials and mon­ey laundering offences over the SPV saga as alleged by Michael Achumugu, former Atiku’s aide.

Addressing Nigerians at a world press conference in Abuja, Festus Keyamo, who led the joint media director­ates of the Tinubu/Shetti­ma Presidential Campaign Council declared on Monday in Abuja that Atiku has no business seeking the nation’s exalted office when consid­ered against the backdrop of allegations made by Michael Achumugu.

The APC media team said Michael Achumugu, a whistle blower, has provided the na­tion with iron-cast evidence of letters of appointment by Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, emails, documents, audio clips, sworn affidavit and di­rect oral evidence as to how Atiku Abubakar during his tenure as vice president be­tween 1999 and 2007, colluded with his then boss, President Olusegun Obasanjo, to fleece the country and steal public funds using what he termed ‘Special Purpose Vehicles’ (SPVs), or companies in which the Atikunwas alleged to have interest.

Displaying a certified true copy of sworn affidavit by Achumugu, the APC presi­dential joint media director­ate said the documents and recorded voice messages ten­dered by the whistleblower suggest that the PDP presi­dential candidate has in­fringed the nation’s legal code.
According the APC PCC Media Team, the “SPVs were companies Atiku admittedly registered upon assumption of office as vice president (with the approval of Presi­dent Olusegun Obasanjo) us­ing “trusted allies” as share­holders and directors.

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“The purpose was to di­vert government contracts to these companies as ‘consul­tants’ and then paid monies into these companies and used those monies to fund the PDP and their private busi­nesses and family activities.

“From the oral account of the whistle-blower, the voice notes and all other support­ing documents, these are the possible infractions of the law Atiku Abubakar has commit­ted and we urge his prosecu­tion along these areas”.

The APC PCC Media Team insisted that given the submissions made by the whistleblower in viral videos, “Atiku Abubakar has a case to answer”.

They, therefore, invited the relevant law enforcement agencies to swing into action and investigate the serious allegations.

The APC PCC Media Team in a statement jointly signed also urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commis­sion (EFCC) to also recover monies deposited in Marine Float Accounts since it has become evident that the com­pany was a SPV.

“In the circumstance, since the nation now knows that the Marine Float Account and other similar accounts were ‘SPV’ accounts, it follows that all payments made into that account were monies stolen from the public coffers.

“Therefore, we call on all security agencies to recover all monies withdrawn from that account by anyone for that matter”.

Other signatories to the statement read by Keyamo included Dele Alake, Special Adviser, Media, Communica­tions and Public Affairs; Bayo Onanuga,

Director, Media and Public­ity; Femi Fani-Kayode, Direc­tor, Special Media Projects/ New Media, and, Alhaji Idris Mohammed, Director, Strate­gic Communications.

Tinubu Not Atiku Should With­draw From Presidential Race — PDP

Reacting, the PDP dis­missed as irresponsible the attempt by the APC and its presidential candidate, Asi­waju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to divert public attention from the issues affecting Nigerians.

This is even as the Atiku/ Okowa Presidential Cam­paign Organisation described the formation of a uniformed squad by the APC code-named ‘Jagaban Army’ as a treason­able act and calls for the arrest and questioning of the APC presidential candidate, Sena­tor Tinubu.

PDP, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Hon. Debo Ologunagba, also described as irresponsible Tinubu’s atrocious record and the vexatious misrule of the APC by demanding that the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, should with­draw from the presidential race on account of simulated allegations by the APC.

“It is indeed ironic that an embattled Tinubu, who is beleaguered by uncountable cases of fraudulent activities, including perjury, forgery, trea­sury looting, corruption and narcotic-related conviction can attempt to impugn on the unimpeachable integrity of the PDP presidential candidate.
“For clarity and for the interest of Nigerians, it is on record that Atiku Abubakar is one of the most investigated public officials in this country. It is also on record that in all the investigations undertak­en over him and his affairs, Atiku Abubakar was never found culpable in any of the allegations.
“In contrast, however, the APC presidential candidate has litany of confirmed legal impediments on very grave issues including those that borders on international crime, namely, trafficking in narcotic and taking proceeds of narcotic.”
The PDP said that in the recent case revealed in the United States of America, it is on record that the APC presi­dential candidate forfeited the sum of $460,000, which was confirmed and found to be proceed of trafficking in nar­cotic, an international crime for which Nigeria, being a signatory to International Convention on Trafficking in Narcotic is obliged to enforce.
“The effect of the convic­tion and forfeiture of the sum of $460,000 by Asiwaju Tinubu confirms that he is ineligible and not qualified to contest for the Office of the President of Nigeria as required by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended),” the party said.
Explaining further, the PDP said: “For clarity, section 137 (1) (d) of the constitution of Federal Republic of Nige­ria, 1999 (as amended) pro­vides that: (1) “A person shall not be qualified for election to the office of president if… (d) He is under a sentence of death imposed by any compe­tent court of law or tribunal in Nigeria or a sentence of imprisonment or fine for any offence involving dishonesty or fraud (by whatever name called) or for any other of­fence, imposed on him by any court or tribunal or substitut­ed by a competent authority for any other sentence im­posed on him by such a court or tribunal.”
The PDP said: “Having been convicted, sentenced and fined for narcotic traf­ficking in a criminal suit filed pursuant to the United States Criminal Code, Asiwaju Tinu­bu cannot by virtue of section 137 (1)(d) of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Ni­geria 1999 (as amended) seek office as president of Nigeria.
“The APC presidential candidate has not come out to deny the conviction and forfeiture or show evidence of any attempt by him to chal­lenge or appeal the judgment, apparently believing that it will slide with time. Asiwaju Tinubu ought to know that time does not run against the state in a criminal matter!
“He should, therefore, withdraw from the presiden­tial race having been found ineligible and not qualified to run or to contest for the Office of the President of Nigeria under the provisions of the Nigerian constitution.”
In the same vein, Atiku/ Okowa Campaign Organi­sation in a statement by its spokesperson, Kola Ologbondi­yan, said that the ‘Jagaban Army’, which is apparently set up to disrupt the 2023 general elections and raid the polling units for votes on behalf of APC presidential candidate, Senator Tinubu, is a direct affront to the Nigeria Armed Forces and other security agen­cies as well as an assault on the sovereignty of the nation.
“It is reprehensible that Tinubu can create a rogue force just for the purposes of undermining the electoral and security arrangements of our nation.
“Our campaign holds that this nefarious act of the APC Tinubu/Shettima Campaign lend credence to the position of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and well-mean­ing Nigerians that Tinubu as well as his rank and file has set out to make our nation ungovernable and thereafter disrupt the 2023 presidential election scheduled for Febru­ary 25, 2023, using his army of ‘Jagabandits’.
“The notion of Jagaban Army is a ploy to bring hood­lums, thugs and gangsters together under the cover of the APC and turn them into official militia that will be used to unleash mayhem on the day of election.
“This reckless anti-dem­ocratic plot by the ‘Jagaban­dits’ must also be condemned by all lovers of democracy in Nigeria and across the world over,” the campaign said.
The campaign called on the security agencies to save the lives of Nigerians and protect the electoral process by imme­diately going after this danger­ous formation, arrest those be­hind this design and save the nation from electoral violence.
“Our campaign counsels Tinubu to note that his presi­dential ambition is not a do or die affair and that he should not set the nation ablaze just because Nigerians have re­jected him and his party, the APC, for their mass failures,” the campaign said.