Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has inaugurated state coordinators of the RiseUpNaija Movement, launching a drive for 20 million votes

“I would say the greatest mistake I made was picking Atiku Abubakar as my vice president in 1999,” he said.

He accused the administration of institutionalised fiscal recklessness and what he called one of the greatest appropriation scandals in the country’s history.

Atiku’s stance followed the president’s recent declaration that he would “wrestle his opponents to the finish.”

He noted that an additional N3.19 trillion classified as “budget support” was obtained despite no such provision existing in the approved budget, with no clear disclosure of its source.

“These are not allegations from the opposition. They are grave constitutional questions raised by a distinguished senator of the ruling party,” he said.

According to the statement, governance is not a public relations exercise and cannot be measured by diplomatic soundbites or claimed commendations but by the safety of citizens and the government’s ability to protect them from harm. It added that until that constitutional obligation is fulfilled, “every celebration of external praise rings hollow”.

Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has faulted President Bola Tinubu’s aggressive domestic borrowing, questioning why the administration continued to pile up debts despite an estimated ¦ 7.98 trillion windfall from high international crude oil prices.

“This naturally raises two unavoidable questions. First, why is a government enjoying such an extraordinary oil windfall borrowing at almost twice last year’s pace as though the nation were in financial distress? Second, where is the money?” he queried.

“Both President Tinubu and his inept APC administration should seek more knowledge about good governance and developmental communication

“What emergency or unforeseen expenditure justifies increasing the service-wide vote from ₦638.34 billion in 2024 to over ₦12.8 trillion in 2026? That is an increase of approximately 1,918 per cent in barely two years,” Wanna said, dismissing the APC’s contingency-fund defence as a “lazy excuse”.

“President Tinubu owes Nigerians an unreserved apology for presiding over this unprecedented collapse of public accountability. If he cannot immediately restore public confidence through a genuinely independent investigation and ensure that everyone responsible is held to account, then he has forfeited the moral authority to continue in office. The honourable course is simple: apologise to Nigerians and resign,” he declared.

“Anything less will reinforce the growing perception that religion is being exploited as a convenient cover for diverting public resources.

Atiku zeroed in on the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, where he said N2.19 trillion of the SWV is listed as personnel costs, dwarfing the N54.8 billion allocated for salaries at the Federal Ministry of Finance. “Who exactly are the workers earning ₦2.19 trillion? Where are they? What offices do they occupy? What agencies do they belong to?” he asked, describing the figures as budgetary absurdity rather than legitimate planning.

Atiku said the revelation, coming alongside Nigeria’s poor showing on nearly 90 percent of globally recognised prosperity indicators, exposes the Tinubu administration as one of the most fiscally reckless governments in Nigeria’s democratic history.