The Senior Political Assistant to former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, Demola Olarewaju, has accused former President Olusegun Obasanjo of pursuing a political vendetta against his former deputy, insisting that the lingering rift between the two former leaders is politically motivated and not personal.
Olarewaju stated this on Monday while speaking on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State. He appeared on the programme alongside the Executive Director of the Centre for Responsive Governance, Ayodeji Ologun, who also backed the claim that Obasanjo’s opposition to Atiku was politically driven.
According to Olarewaju, Atiku still holds the former president in high esteem despite their longstanding political differences.
He said, “The relationship between the former President Obasanjo and Atiku, in my view as a Nigerian who witnessed the administration and the post-administration, is the fact that they do not seem to have a personal issue. It is clear from how Atiku holds Obasanjo in high esteem.”
The aide, however, alleged that the major source of disagreement between the two former leaders was Obasanjo’s opposition to Atiku becoming president.
“The issue between them is political and, for reasons best known to Obasanjo, it is very clear and obvious that he does not want Atiku Abubakar to ever be President of the Federal Republic,” Olarewaju said.
He further criticised what he described as Obasanjo’s belief that no other Nigerian leader could equal his achievements or govern the country better than he did.
“I think another thing that has become very clear is his instability about the opinion that Obasanjo holds that nobody can meet up with his achievement and nobody can govern Nigeria better than him,” he said.
The latest exchange is part of the longstanding political disagreement between Obasanjo and Atiku, which dates back to their time in office between 1999 and 2007.
The dispute was recently reignited after Obasanjo described his decision to pick Atiku as his running mate in 1999 as the “biggest mistake” of his political life. He also alleged that Atiku was involved in an attempt to impeach him in 2003.
Obasanjo claimed that Atiku paid N5m to the late Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ghali Umar Na’Abba, to commence the impeachment process.
Atiku, through his media aides, rejected the allegation, describing it as part of what he called a longstanding campaign of “lies, deceit and historical distortion.”
The former vice-president also maintained that his disagreement with Obasanjo was largely connected to his refusal to support the former president’s controversial third-term bid.
Olarewaju said Atiku’s political ambition would not be derailed by Obasanjo’s opposition ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
“We are determined that this opposition won’t affect Atiku’s campaign,” he said.
Speaking on concerns about Atiku’s age, Olarewaju argued that the debate should focus more on Nigeria’s governance structure than the age of an individual seeking the presidency.
“One of the biggest problems that we have in Nigeria is that the Federal Republic of Nigeria is not actually federal. That’s why we have so much power concentrated on Abuja, and over time it has continued to be a problem,” he said.
He added that simply changing the occupant of the Presidential Villa without addressing the country’s structural challenges would not solve Nigeria’s problems.
“Anybody you put there, unless they go back to fixing the fundamentals, they will continue; we will continue to have the same problem,” Olarewaju said.
Also speaking, Ologun backed Olarewaju’s position, arguing that Obasanjo’s attitude towards Atiku had changed over the years.
He recalled that Obasanjo spoke favourably about Atiku ahead of the 2019 presidential election and acknowledged the former vice-president’s understanding of governance.
“In 2019, Obasanjo spoke well about Atiku, saying that he knows well about running the affairs of the country,” Ologun said.
He questioned the former president’s continued opposition to Atiku, insisting that the former vice-president had not personally wronged Obasanjo.
“But no matter what happens, we want Nigerians to understand the truth that Atiku never did a thing to Obasanjo,” he said.
Ologun added, “Obasanjo is attacking Atiku for political reasons; he doesn’t want him to become the president.”
The Executive Director also defended Atiku against concerns about his age, describing him as one of Nigeria’s most experienced politicians with a broad understanding of the country’s political landscape.
