Alleged bribe: You are dragging the dead into 2027 politics — Atiku replies Obasanjo
By Precious Mark
Former Vice President and Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar has accused former President Olusegun Obasanjo of dragging a deceased lawmaker into political feuds over a fresh N5 million bribery claim.
The row follows allegations raised by Obasanjo claiming that Atiku bribed the late former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Ghali Umar Na’Abba, with N5 million to facilitate his impeachment during their tenure in office.
Reacting through a statement issued on Friday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku faulted the timing and moral ground of the claim, asserting that conscripting the late Speaker into political disputes violates both equity and traditional African values.
“As Africans, we understand the solemn duty of speaking truthfully about the dead.”
“It is deeply troubling that former President Obasanjo has chosen this moment to allege that I gave the late Rt. Hon. Ghali Umar Na’Abba a bribe of N5 million to impeach him,” Atiku stated.
Questioning why the former President remained silent while Na’Abba was alive, the ADC leader asserted that invoking the late lawmaker deprives the public of a fair assessment.
“If this allegation were true, why did he never make it while Rt. Hon. Na’Abba was alive? Why wait until the only man who could confirm or refute the claim has departed this world,.”
“By invoking a deceased man as the principal witness, former President Obasanjo has denied Nigerians the opportunity of hearing the other side of the story. The grave is not a witness box,” Atiku questioned.
He emphasized that Na’Abba cannot now defend his own integrity or respond to the allegation that he accepted a bribe, describing the move as an unfair assault on the late Speaker’s memory.
Connecting the sudden resurfacing of the controversy to calculated maneuvering ahead of the next general election, Atiku claimed the strategy aims to discredit him and prop up Obasanjo’s preferred candidate.
“Coming at a time when the political landscape ahead of the 2027 general election is taking shape, the obvious objective is to besmirch my person and reputation and confer an undeserved political advantage on the former President’s kinsman.”
“Nigerians are too discerning to be distracted by stale allegations resurrected for political convenience,” he noted.
The former Vice President challenged Obasanjo to declare his political position openly rather than relying on unverifiable claims.
“If former President Obasanjo has chosen to take a political position ahead of 2027, he should simply declare it and allow Nigerians to judge it on its merits, rather than attempting to influence public opinion through allegations that can no longer be tested,” Atiku said.