#AtikuInUS: ‘A thief remains a thief no matter where he visits’ – APC

The All Progressives Congress (APC), United States (US) chapter has reacted to the eventual visit of a former vice-president and current presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, to Washington DC.

The party argued that “A thief remains a thief no matter where he or she visits.” It added that Atiku has every reason to have kept off the USA given the cloak of “corruption he is wearing”.

Atiku on Thursday for the first time in 13 years visited the US to the apparent chagrin of the ruling APC which had maintained that the PDP candidate dare not visit US because of his alleged involvement in corruption in the foreign country.

However, following Atiku’s eventual visit, the chairman US chapter of the APC, Adeshegun Labinjo, said in a statement on Friday that the visit will not free Atiku of his alleged involvement in corruption. He said he will still be held accountable for the supposed offence.

“The questionable character of the individual does not evaporate because he has stepped on the soil of America. A thief remains a thief no matter where he or she visits.

“Obviously, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku has every reason to have kept off the USA given the cloak of corruption he is wearing.

“After a long spell of noticeable absence and factual concerns about Alhaji Abubakur Atiku’s antecedents in the USA arising from his dealings with former Congressman William Jefferson of Louisiana, who was convicted and served a jail term on account of bribery resulting from a telecommunication transaction in Nigeria, Atiku is now here again in the US.

READ ALSO: #AtikuInUS: Shehu Sani mocks APC

“Congressional records point to the fact that Atiku engaged in money laundering through his wife who was then resident in the USA.

“We see Atiku, who is the 2019 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of Nigeria, as a self-centered corrupt Vice President under President Obasanjo’s regime.

“Certainly, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku‘s entry and presence in the USA is a mockery of President Bush Presidential Proclamation 7750 which affirms the denial of US visa to foreign officials involved with corruption and other supporting legislations by the congress. APC-USA believes that Alhaji Abubakar Atiku should be held accountable for his involvement m money laundering,” the statement read.

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