APC Presidential Campaign Council to Atiku: Political animosity is controlling you

A statement by Dele Alake, spokesman for the council said Atiku has “allowed political animosity and uncontrollable ambition to rob him of the statesmanship that should guide his public conduct and utterances”.

The APC Presidential Campaign Council has taken a dig at Atiku Abubakar for calling President Bola Tinubu by his first name, Bola; calling it indiscretion and disrespect for the office of the President of Nigeria and Commander-in-Chief.

A statement by Dele Alake, spokesman for the council said Atiku has “allowed political animosity and uncontrollable ambition to rob him of the statesmanship that should guide his public conduct and utterances”.

Below is the statement:

We have followed the furore and public reactions to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s self-imposed indiscretion and disrespect for the office of the President of Nigeria and Commander-in-Chief, the Presidential candidate of the ADC.

While a higher standard of decorum, decency and deference to constituted authorities is expected from a former Vice President of Nigeria and an aspirant to the highest office in the country, we are concerned that the ADC Presidential candidate has not lived up to those expectations by his unbecoming decision to address the President of Nigeria on a first-name basis as ‘Bola’.

Since Alhaji Atiku lost the last Presidential election, he has allowed political animosity and uncontrollable ambition to rob him of the statesmanship that should guide his public conduct and utterances.

Alhaji Atiku, for reasons best known to him alone, chose, rather than being a good example of decency in political behaviour, to set himself up as a model of politician the younger generation of political actors should never aspire to be like.

Without any regard to his personal choice to disrespect the office he is aspiring to occupy, the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council has implored all party leaders, spokespersons, party members and support groups to accord all the respect, courtesies and regard due to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as former Vice President of Nigeria and a Presidential candidate.

As a party grounded in progressive ideals and African traditional values of respect, our campaign council will not follow Alhaji Atiku’s path.

Our campaign will focus on issues important to Nigerians. We will sell our party programmes, President Bola Tinubu’s achievements in office, and how the administration is moving Nigeria from reforms to prosperity as the President seeks a second-term mandate from Nigerians.

Dele Alake

Spokesperson

APC Presidential Campaign Council

October 12,