Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar on Saturday, August 1, came hard on his former boss, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, over his latest public outburst against him.
He said no amount of bitterness from the former president can erase either the constitutional stand he took against the infamous third-term agenda or the pivotal role he played in his personal and political journey.
He described Obasanjo as an unforgiven and vindictive person.
His reaction came as Obasanjo on Friday described his decision to choose Atiku as his running mate in the 1999 presidential election as the greatest mistake of his political career.
The former president made the remark in Lagos during a fireside chat with Charly Boy at the unveiling of Charly Boy’s foundation and his memoir, “999: A Memoir in Tribute to Late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa.”
Reacting to Obasanjo’s comments through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) described the criticism as another failed attempt to rewrite history.
Atiku said he watched his former boss’s interview with profound sadness, not anger, because it reflected the disposition of a man who has allowed personal resentment to cloud historical truth.
He said the genesis of Chief Obasanjo’s hostility towards him was well known to Nigerians.
“I am proud that I stood against the third-term agenda. I am proud that I stood by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I have no apology whatsoever for frustrating every attempt to subvert our democracy for personal ambition.
“If Chief Obasanjo’s bitterness stems from my refusal to support an unconstitutional third term, then I wear that resentment as a badge of honour. No individual, regardless of his status or accomplishments, is bigger than the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Constitution is supreme, and I chose Nigeria over personal loyalty.”
Atiku noted that the struggle against the third-term agenda was never about two individuals but about preserving Nigeria’s constitutional democracy for future generations.
“The Nigerian people won that battle. Democracy won that battle. History has already delivered its verdict,” he stated.
The former Vice President said it was therefore unfortunate that the same man whose unconstitutional ambition was resisted now seeks to sit in judgment over those who defended the Constitution.
Atiku said it was particularly instructive that barely 24 hours before Chief Obasanjo’s latest outburst, the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, publicly paid tributes to the economic management team he led, describing it as “the best Nigeria has ever had.”
“Whether or not the timing is merely coincidental is for Nigerians to judge. What is beyond dispute, however, is that while distinguished Nigerians who served at the highest levels continue to acknowledge my contributions to one of Nigeria’s most successful periods of economic management, Chief Obasanjo appears determined to diminish them.
“Chief Obasanjo may choose not to appreciate my role in building one of Nigeria’s most prosperous economic eras, but history has been far kinder. The record speaks for itself, and so do the testimonies of those who worked closely with that administration,” Atiku said.
The former Vice President expressed disappointment that at a time when Nigeria is battling economic hardship, mass unemployment, insecurity and widespread despair, a former President would devote so much energy to recycling old grudges instead of contributing solutions to the country’s challenges.
“The 2027 election should be about rebuilding Nigeria, restoring security, reviving the economy and giving hope to the next generation—not reopening old political wounds.”
