Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has launched a scathing counter-attack against the Presidency, dismissing claims that he remained silent following the rescue of abducted schoolchildren and teachers in Oyo State, and accusing presidential media aides of either being "too lazy" to verify facts or "too embarrassed" to acknowledge his earlier statement.
In a statement issued on Saturday, 11 July 2026, by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said there are only two possible explanations for the Presidency's latest outburst. "It is astonishing that a Presidency with limitless public resources could accuse someone of silence without carrying out the most basic verification. Either they failed to read our statement because they were too lazy to do so, or they deliberately ignored it because it exposed uncomfortable truths about their misplaced priorities," the statement read.
The reaction followed criticism from the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, who had faulted Atiku for not publicly reacting to the release of the Oriire pupils and their teachers nearly 18 hours after they regained their freedom. "Almost 18 hours after the Oriire pupils and their teachers regained their freedom, Atiku Abubakar has not deemed it fit to rejoice with the Tinubu Federal Government, the security agencies and the traumatised victims," Onanuga had stated.
But Atiku insisted that contrary to the false narrative being peddled, he had issued a comprehensive press statement earlier on Saturday, 11 July 2026, titled "A Nation at War Needs a Commander-in-Chief, Not a Campaigner-in-Chief," in which he welcomed the rescue of the children, commended the gallantry of the Armed Forces and other security agencies, and called for sustained efforts to rescue every Nigerian still in captivity. "The rescue of innocent schoolchildren from the hands of terrorists is a victory for our gallant troops and a source of hope for every Nigerian family. They deserve the gratitude of the nation," the earlier statement had quoted Atiku as saying.
The former Vice President had also stressed that the successful rescue of the Oyo schoolchildren should not distract the nation from the painful reality that many other Nigerians, including abducted schoolchildren and innocent citizens in Borno and several other parts of the country, remain in captivity. "One successful rescue must not become an excuse for self-congratulation. A nation cannot celebrate while other parents still go to bed not knowing whether their children are alive or dead. Our work is not done until every abducted Nigerian is safely reunited with his or her family," he had said.
Atiku also used the opportunity to criticise President Bola Tinubu for allegedly prioritising politics over national security, arguing that the rescue coincided with the launch of the All Progressives Congress' door-to-door campaign ahead of the 2027 presidential election. "No serious government should be consumed by the politics of re-election while innocent schoolchildren have remained in the custody of kidnappers for weeks. The first campaign of any responsible administration must be the campaign to rescue its citizens, restore security and reassure anxious families. Politics can wait; the lives of innocent children cannot," he said.
He maintained that while the military discharged its responsibility with professionalism, the Presidency failed to provide the leadership Nigerians expected after one of the country's most significant security successes in recent times. He said President Tinubu, as Commander-in-Chief, ought to have personally addressed the nation alongside the country's defence chiefs immediately after the rescue operation. "What Nigerians expected yesterday was to see a Commander-in-Chief leading from the front. Following the successful rescue operation, the President ought to have immediately addressed the nation alongside his defence chiefs—not merely to announce the good news, but to brief Nigerians on the operation, acknowledge the bravery of the troops, highlight the lessons learned, reassure families that no effort would be spared to rescue those still in captivity, and send an unmistakable message to bandits and terrorists that the Nigerian state remains resolute," Atiku said.
The ADC presidential candidate criticised the decision to leave the announcement of the rescue to the President's spokesman while the President was publicly engaged in political activities. "The Commander-in-Chief is more than a constitutional title; it is a moral responsibility. In moments of national triumph and national grief, Nigerians expect to see their President embody that office. Leadership is not exercised only behind closed doors; it must also be seen, heard and felt by both the citizens and those who threaten them," he added.
Atiku said the reproduced excerpts from his earlier statement exposed the Presidency's allegation as entirely false. "We did not only congratulate the security agencies; we praised their courage, professionalism and sacrifice in unmistakable terms. What we declined to do was to applaud a commander-in-chief who, at a defining moment of national importance, remained publicly preoccupied with partisan political activities instead of personally leading the nation in celebrating the success of our troops and reassuring families whose loved ones remain in captivity," he said.
He added that no amount of propaganda can erase the fundamental questions raised in his earlier statement. "The rescue of the Oyo schoolchildren brought joy to the nation, but Nigerians are still asking: when will the children abducted in Borno and other innocent citizens across the country also regain their freedom? Those questions remain unanswered," he said. Atiku urged the Presidency to devote less energy to manufacturing controversies around opposition statements and more to confronting the security challenges facing the country. "A government secure in its performance does not invent silence where there was a documented public statement. It responds to legitimate concerns with facts and results, not propaganda," he said.
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