I regret rift with Obasanjo, but I did the right thing —Atiku

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has said that he regretted disagreeing with ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo but said he did the right thing fighting to ensure his former boss did not elongate his stay in office as president longer than eight years.

Atiku also boasted that as the vice president of Nigeria he assembled the best economic team in the country made up of young professionals.

He further said that he did not become rich between 1999 and 2007 while he was deputy to then President Obasanjo.

The former vice president made these explanations in a letter he wrote to a comedian, Francis Agoda, popularly known as I Go Dye. He was responding to an earlier letter the comedian wrote him.

I Go Dye had in a post on his Instagram told Atiku, “Don’t use sentimental empathy on the youths to express your political ambitions. Sir, you are one of those that have immensely benefited from Nigeria since your birth in 1946.

“Having worked for 20 years with the Nigeria Customs where you retired at the age of 43 in 1989 as Deputy Director, your bucket list sure looks good because you were obviously employed at youth 23.

“In 1999 you became governor of Adamawa and ultimately the Vice President, all of these you achieved at 53. What did you do during your time in that exalted position? When will the youths like in your time get a chance?”

The comedian had told Atiku that he wrote him in response to his claim that “A party that does not take the youths into account is a dying party. The future belongs to the young.” I Go Die had asked Atiku to tell the future he said belong to the young when he is still contesting for an election at his age.

Replying Atiku said in his letter, “People say I became rich in government. It’s a lie. I had hundreds of millions of dollars in assets declared in 1999. I was able to personally bankroll the Peoples Democratic Party back then, so surely, I was not poor.”

Mocking his former All Progressives Congress (APC) party, Atiku said, “I Go Dye, I’m not a messiah. I do not promise Eldorado or $1 = N1, but I always ask that we should look at the economic progress we made under my leadership and what I am doing in private business and judge me by those.”

On his achievement while serving as vice he claimed, “As VP, I assembled what is arguably the best economic team ever in Nigeria. It was made up of young, world-class professionals, who came home to work. Some of those professionals are now political leaders, governors and world leaders in their own right.

“If you ask what our first task was, coming into government in 1999, it was to bring stability to the economy after decades of military rule.

“For example, between 1999 and 2003, oil prices then were hovering between $16 and $28 yet we managed to pay up salary arrears from decades back, clear up our national debts and build up foreign reserves. Our Gross Domestic Product grew at the fastest rate we’ve seen since the return to democracy.”

READ ALSO: I rejected foreign help of rescue from prison because I was ready to stand for Nigeria no matter the cost- Obasanjo

Atiku further told I Go Dye that as a president he could not do much as he was not the driver.

“Firstly, as VP, I can only be judged on the responsibilities I was given. A VP obviously is not the driver of government. For example, you can’t blame Prof. Osinbajo for all that is going on with the current government. He can only do what he’s allowed to do.”

On his rift with Obasanjo he said, “I regret that I had that disagreement with my boss. Some say I was disloyal, but I looked at the events in Zimbabwe recently, and it gives me confidence that I did the right thing fighting the attempts to elongate the presidential tenure beyond eight years.

“If I did not win that fight, do you think we would be having a discussion on young people getting into leadership today?

“It is sad that many of those young people are heading back abroad now — this is to show you that leadership matters.

“I went to the World Bank and met a bright lady, convinced her to come back home, and she became a star in our government. To show you we had effective leadership, the same lady could not replicate her exploits under a different government.”

 

 

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