Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of using anti-corruption agencies to force opposition leaders to defect to the ruling All Progressives Congress.
In a message posted on his verified Facebook page on Tuesday, Atiku bemoaned that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission had become a political weapon.
On Monday, the EFCC detained former Sokoto State Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal for alleged financial malfeasance, and it also summoned former Imo State Governor Emeka Ihedioha for corruption charges during his brief term.
In response, Atiku alleged that Tambuwal’s detention was only because he is a member of the alliance seeking to oppose President Tinubu in the 2027 elections.
He stated, “The only reason the EFCC has detained the former Governor of Sokoto State, Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, is because he is a member of the opposition Coalition.
“It is a continuation of the Tinubu-led administration’s agenda to harrass, intimidate, and decimate the opposition.
“The reality unfolding before us today is that the Tinubu administration, as with other aspects, has objectified the fight against corruption as a political tool to coerce opposition leaders into the ruling party.
“We are living witnesses to a growing trend where the state and its operators have assumed the roles of a bully by making corruption and the fight against it a political agenda.
“Certainly, that is not the objective for which I worked hard during our administration to create the EFCC.”
Atiku emphasised that while fighting corruption needs everyone’s support, using it as a political weapon must be condemned by civil society and Nigeria’s international partners.
The statement read in part, “It is as though today, anyone who associates with the opposition is a target for phantom corruption allegations, and it is as though, as soon as they are coerced into the political agenda of President Tinubu, their ‘sins’ are forgiven.
“That, definitely, is not how to build institutions. That, certainly, is not how to fight the monster of corruption. Indeed, such tendencies provide the stimulant for corruption to thrive.
“We have seen how the EFCC has been used to empty opposition state governors into the ruling party, and the tea party is not about to end anytime soon.
“While the genuine fight against corruption is a matter that requires the total support of all Nigerians, the objectification of it as a political agenda should be roundly condemned by all in civil society spaces and friends of Nigeria in the international community.
Atiku promised that opposition leaders would resist any anti-democratic attempts to force the nation into a one-party dictatorship.
