Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has expressed concern about what he calls an increasing trend of young Nigerians selling their kidneys to survive the country’s cost-of-living problem, blaming President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies for the situation.
On Thursday, the Africa Democratic Congress presidential candidate wrote on X that he has heard “disturbing stories” of young Nigerians selling body organs, mainly kidneys, in desperate attempts to acquire money.
“I have heard disturbing stories about the extent to which young Nigerians are being driven simply to survive. Perhaps the most horrifying are the growing reports of young people selling parts of their bodies: kidneys in particular, in desperate attempts to raise money,” Atiku wrote.
He claimed young Nigerians should be “selling dreams, ideas, and innovation, not their body organs,” and that the trend should “offend the conscience of every Nigerian.”
Atiku said that young Nigerians were being driven to sell their kidneys for as cheap as ₦1.7m, without citing any specific reports or agencies.
The former vice president attributed the trend to the rising cost of living during Tinubu’s administration, citing food, transportation, rent, school fees, medicine, and energy as commodities that have grown increasingly costly for average Nigerians.
He said, “In Tinubu’s Nigeria, almost everything required to live with dignity is becoming more expensive by the day: food, transport, rent, school fees, medicine, and electricity.
“Yet young Nigerians are reportedly being driven to sell their kidneys for as little as ₦1.7 million.
“That should break the heart of a nation.
“Young Nigerians should be building careers, starting businesses, raising families, and pursuing their dreams, not calculating how many parts of their bodies can fetch simply to stay alive.
“When young Nigerians begin to see their kidneys as emergency savings, we are no longer talking about ordinary economic hardship. We are talking about desperation at its most frightening.”
Atiku noted that Nigeria currently has laws forbidding commercial organ sales and trafficking but claimed that “laws alone cannot cure the poverty and desperation that make vulnerable young people easy prey for criminal networks.”
He advocated for economic reforms with “a human face,” such as inexpensive food, cheaper transportation, accessible healthcare, good jobs, and “renewed hope for the next generation.”
The former vice president concluded his statement with a direct swipe at the president: “Tinubu made Nigeria expensive.” “I’ll make Nigeria affordable again.”
Atiku’s comments came after a flurry of reports and unsubstantiated claims of organ trafficking in various parts of the country in recent weeks.
The Nigeria Police Force recently displayed four individuals, two of whom are nephrologists, in connection with the purported operation.
According to police, one of the suspects, Emmanuel Ode, acknowledged recruiting victims and revealed that a 22-year-old male was persuaded to an Abuja hospital in April, where his kidney was allegedly harvested for $1,250, or around N1.7 million.
According to investigators, the suspected gang targeted vulnerable and financially needy young people in Nasarawa and the surrounding areas.
