Atiku: Tinubu in Plateau to make merry with elite while the people mourn

Atiku Abubakar, former vice-president, has criticised President Bola Tinubu for attending a social event in Plateau state amid worsening insecurity in the north-central region.

In a statement posted on X on Saturday by Paul Ibe, his media adviser, Atiku said it was “deeply unfortunate” that Tinubu has never visited any of the states affected by violent attacks to commiserate with grieving citizens.

“With large swathes of the country still under siege from unrelenting insecurity and thousands of innocent lives lost, it is deeply unfortunate that President Bola Tinubu has not, for once, found it worthy to visit any of the affected states to commiserate with the grieving citizens,” he said.

Atiku said Tinubu’s visit to Plateau, which the former vice-president described as “one of the most terrorised parts of the North Central”, was not to share in the people’s pain but “to attend a social event under the auspices of his party’s national chairman.”

‘HEARTLESS EXHIBITION OF DISREGARD FOR EMPATHY’

Atiku described the development as “a sad reflection of priorities and a glaring mockery of leadership”, adding that while families in Plateau “continue to bury their loved ones, President Tinubu chose to grace a political funeral rather than stand with the people in their darkest hour”.

“Between the APC national chairman and his president, what we witnessed today is a heartless exhibition of disregard for empathy, compassion, and the dignity of human life,” he added.

The former vice-president also accused the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government of ignoring the plight of victims of violence across Benue, Niger, Kwara, and other parts of the north-central region.

“From Benue to Niger and most recently Kwara, the entire North Central region has endured some of the most horrific waves of violence in recent history. Yet, not once has the APC-led government deemed it necessary to physically stand by the victims or console their families,” he said.

Atiku recalled that during Tinubu’s symbolic visit to Benue in June, “he never bothered to set foot in Yelewata — the epicentre of the massacre”, but “ended his trip comfortably in Makurdi, turning his back on the people whose tears and blood still stain the soil”.

“Now again, he is in Plateau State, not to console the bereaved or reassure the broken, but to celebrate and make merry with his party elite while the people mourn,” Atiku said.

“The message could not be clearer: this is a president who would rather feast than feel — a leader who finds pleasure where the people find pain. The Nigerian people are watching — and they will remember.”