By Onoja Baba, Nigeria
Former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of orchestrating a campaign of harassment and intimidation against opposition figures and critics of the government.
In a statement made via Facebook on Thursday, Atiku condemned the recent arrest and prosecution of activist Omoyele Sowore, as well as what he described as the targeting of Professor Usman Yusuf, a vocal critic of the current administration.
He warned that the government’s actions were aimed at dismantling the opposition and paving the way for a one-party autocracy.
“When I made the clarion call that Tinubu and the APC were devoting their energies to the systematic harassment, intimidation, and dismantling of the opposition, all in service of their grand design for a one-party autocracy, I became the target of vicious attacks,” Atiku stated.
He expressed concern that at the rate the government was proceeding, it might soon resort to detaining more opposition figures.
Atiku Abubakar, a former vice president of Nigeria from 1999 to 2007, was the presidential candidate of the PDP in the 2019 and 2023 elections.
As a key opposition figure, he has been a persistent critic of the APC-led government, particularly on issues of governance, democracy, and economic policies.
The Nigerian government has not officially responded to Atiku’s allegations.
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