Atiku says Presidency’s China analogy exposes Tinubu to greater scrutiny

Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Atiku Abubakar, has criticised the Presidency for invoking China in its defence of President Bola Tinubu, arguing that the comparison has instead heightened public scrutiny of the president over past allegations.

In a statement issued on Friday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Mr Atiku described the Presidency’s argument as a “monumental own goal,” insisting that China’s tough stance on drug-related offences and corruption undermined, rather than strengthened, the government’s position.

The former vice president accused the Presidency of presenting the United States Government’s response to diplomatic correspondence as though it amounted to a judicial exoneration of Tinubu.

He argued that diplomatic exchanges between sovereign states could not be equated with a court judgment or a declaration of innocence.

According to Mr Atiku, the Presidency’s decision to cite China as a benchmark had inadvertently exposed Tinubu to greater public scrutiny because Chinese law prescribes severe punishments, including the death penalty, for serious drug trafficking offences.

“It takes a peculiar kind of unintelligence for a spokesman to set out to drag an opponent before a hypothetical Chinese court, only to end up dragging his own principal into the dock.

“Perhaps the spokesman did not realise that the maximum penalty under Chinese law for the most serious drug trafficking offences is death. Having chosen China as his benchmark, he unwittingly invited Nigerians to examine the very standard he thought would embarrass Atiku Abubakar,” the statement said.

Mr Atiku maintained that he had never been indicted or convicted for corruption, narcotics-related offences or any criminal offence in Nigeria or elsewhere.

“The facts are neither complicated nor disputable. Atiku Abubakar has never been indicted or convicted by any court in Nigeria or anywhere else in the world for corruption, narcotics offences or, indeed, any criminal offence whatsoever. That is an incontrovertible matter of public record,” he stated.

The former vice president further argued that if the Presidency intended to use China as a standard for public accountability, Nigerians were entitled to question what Chinese authorities would have done in relation to the forfeiture of $460,000 to the United States Government in a civil forfeiture proceeding linked to allegations of narcotics trafficking and money laundering.

He said China was globally known for its uncompromising approach to narcotics-related offences and public accountability, adding that such cases ordinarily attract extensive official scrutiny.

Mr Atiku also extended the comparison to issues of governance, corruption and public accountability, contending that China’s criminal justice system would not tolerate alleged budget padding, abuse of public office or the creation of a fake government agency by a senior government official.

He further accused the Mr Tinubu administration of failing to address worsening economic hardship, hunger, insecurity and institutional decline, despite its “Renewed Hope” campaign promises.

“The lesson here is simple. Those who invoke China must be prepared to accept the Chinese standard—not selectively, not rhetorically, but completely. Accountability is not a buffet from which governments choose only the dishes they find palatable,” he said.

Mr Atiku urged the Presidency to improve the quality of its public communication, stressing that propaganda might dominate public discourse temporarily but facts would ultimately prevail.

The latest exchange is part of the growing war of words between the Presidency and the former vice president over allegations relating to President Tinubu’s past, following recent efforts by government officials to dismiss renewed scrutiny of the issue.