Atiku May Dump APC In 2019 Presidential Race

Former Vice President Abubakar Atiku, may abandon the All Progressives Congress (APC), in the forthcoming presidential election come 2019 after allegedly spending over N15 billion for President Muhammadu Buhari election in 2015 and was allegedly dumped.

The former Vice President had accused Buhari of allegedly using him and his team to climb to his present status of Mr President before dumping them without recourse.

Speaking in Asaba, Wednesday during the formal inauguration of Atiku Care Foundation held at Terminal One Hotel, Asaba-Benin Expressway, the National Chairman of the foundation, Aliyu Bin Abbas disclosed that Buhari abandoned Atiku after allegedly deceiving of appointing some members of his team into his (Buhari’s) government.

He accused some cabals in Buhari’s government of allegedly hijacking the government Atiku labored for, “they hijacked the whole thing from us, right from merger to the 2015 general election. We spent over N15 billion, they use us and dumped us. Buhari told my principal to bring names for appointment, my name was actually number three in the list, to my greatest surprise when the list was presented to him, he did not even go through it”.

He alleged that the list containing 35 names given to Buhari for appointment was doctored with additional 35 names, “he requested that our list be submitted again nothing happened and recollected the list for the third time, till date we have not heard any news”.

According to Abbas, “there is serious gang up against Atiku in the party, they don’t want him rule the party and they don’t also want him to leave, the best option is for us to leave”, stressing that with the huge resources Atiku pushed into the campaign of Buhari that brought him to limelight, Atiku should be given his pride of place in the party.

He revealed that some members of the cabal came to his boss, “begging for money”, he alleged.

While responding to a question put across to him on what platform would Atiku contest the presidential race, he said, “with what I have highlighted, if it were you what will you do?

Abbas said the likes of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who came from prison to become the nation’s number one cannot threatened the ambition of Atiku, “Atiku has never been convicted by any court of law. Power belongs to God and it is only God that can decide the future of Atiku, not Obasanjo. We believe that Atiku is one of those people that can handle Nigeria, as a reasonable and responsible person”

Mr Akerete Frank who spoke during the question and answer section said the foundation has long been expected.

Another respondent, Kingsley Jeremiah Agaya, said the movers and shakers of politics in the state are in the 25 local government councils, assuring that the peoples votes have started counting, “and only them can take us to the dream.

He alleged that the Buhari-led administration has brought untold hardship and hunger to Nigerians, “it is Buhari that brought recession to Nigeria with his policies and not the previous administration, “when Jonathan was there Buhari and his group were crying out for restructuring but now that he gotten what he is looking for he has locked up the cry for restructuring away”, he alleged.

Some others said modalities should be put in place to keep the ground running as the foundation has been inaugurated in the state.