Your Desperation Unbecoming of a Statesman, APC Replies Atiku

*Describes his ‘US fishing expedition’ as last kick of a rejected presidential aspirant

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has said that the desperation of the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 elections, Atiku Abubakar, is unbecoming of a statesman who once occupied the second highest office in the land.

The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Felix Morka, in a statement issued Thursday said Atiku had thrown every decency, decorum, dignity and national respectability out the window on his purposeless judicial voyage of discovery to the United States in search of a magic wand for taking power against the will of the Nigerian electorate loudly expressed in last February’s presidential election. 

The ruling party said it was  unfazed by the press conference addressed by the former Vice President. 

Morka said: “The press conference lacked purpose and delivered nothing except the pitiful regurgitation of lies, mindless distortions and deliberate falsehood on his infantile obsession with the academic record of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. 

“For several weeks now, Nigerians and the world have watched with incredulity Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s display of utter desperation in his failed bid to become the President of Nigeria. 

“Earlier today (Thursday) he put his desperation in overdrive during his press conference where he addressed some of the issues in his appeal at the Supreme Court and bandying unproven charges against the President of Nigeria, His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in a calculated attempt to shamelessly whip up public sentiments and inordinately pressure the Supreme Court.”

Morka said the ruling party believes  Atiku should have known better than to demonstrate gross contempt of the highest court by making public comments on a matter that he has submitted to the court for adjudication. 

Morka maintained that it was obvious  that Atiku harbours deep animosity towards Tinubu whom he believes was responsible for his electoral woes in 2007, 2015, 2019 and this year.

He added: “In desperation, unbecoming of a statesman who once occupied the second highest office in the land, the PDP candidate in the last election has thrown every decency, decorum, dignity and national respectability out the window on his purposeless judicial voyage of discovery to the United States in search of a magic wand for taking power against the will of the Nigerian electorate loudly expressed in last February’s presidential election.”

The party’s spokesperson stressed that Atiku holds the unenviable title of Nigeria’s most prolific election loser and longest running presidential candidate in history, saying the APC saw his recent US fishing expedition as the last kick of a roundly rejected presidential aspirant. 

Morka noted that the APC  sympathised with Atiku  for spending a lifetime pursuing an unrealised dream.

The ruling party, however,   condemned the perfidious road he has taken and the needless negative exposure of Nigeria and the institution of the Presidency in foreign land.  

Morka noted that for the record, the APC  wished to provide some clarity on the matter of the deposition of Mr. Caleb Westberg, the Registrar of Chicago State University, last Tuesday under oath at the Chicago office of Atiku’s lawyer, Angela Liu, to save unsuspecting Nigerians from barrage of untruths, distortions and campaign of misinformation being dished out by Atiku and his PDP

He insisted that Westberg was unmistaken and unambiguous in his deposition as to the fact that Tinubu graduated with honours from Chicago State University. 

Morka pointed out that he also emphatically provided clear answers on all other issues raised. 

He noted: ”There is also no part of Mr. Westberg’s deposition where he said that the certificate President Bola Tinubu presented to INEC for his election is fake or was forged. All the insinuations and innuendos in this regard are pure mischief and should be disregarded.  

“President Tinubu could not have forged a University degree he honourably earned because there is no advantage to derive from such and no incentive to do so.

“It should now be clear to all Nigerians that despite Atiku’s lies before the Illinois Court that he wanted to use the discoveries in pursuit of his appeal at the Supreme Court, he has rather chosen to use the same as an instrument of mischief and blackmail in clear contempt of the highest  court of the land.

“We want to urge former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to graciously accept his defeat and quietly lick his political wound with some dignity. Nigerians rejected him at the polls, and he cannot get by subterfuge what he failed to get through the ballot box.”