Former Vice-President and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the 2023 presidential election, Atiku Abubakar, has rejected the outcome of the polls, which declared Asiwaju Bola Tinubu as the president-elect of Nigeria. Atiku referenced a publication in an Austrian newspaper, which described Tinubu as “a suspected drug baron”. He accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of carrying out unprecedented manipulation and fraud during the election process.
Atiku while addressing a world press conference on Thursday, March 2, 2023, said the presidential and national assembly elections were grossly flawed, and every Nigerian must challenge the outcome. According to him, just before he arrived at the press conference venue, he read a report in the Austrian newspaper, which stated that Nigeria had elected a “drug baron” as its president.
He said: “I want to believe that this is not the legacy that President Muhammadu Buhari has promised; for President Buhari, it’s not too late to make amends for the good of our country and the future generations and indeed to assure his legacy.”
Earlier the same day, a newspaper screenshot linking Tinubu to drugs trended, although he had never been convicted. Published in German (the official language of Austria) and loosely translated to English, the news item read:
“Bola Ahmed Tinubu wins ballot in Nigeria. A troubled election in Africa’s largest economy has resulted in a powerful and very wealthy politician as the future president. The government candidate Bola Ahmed Tinubu also won 36 per cent of the votes, as announced by the electoral authority on Wednesday morning. He has been repeatedly linked to drugs and corruption but has never been convicted.”
Here is the Tweet from @firstladyship
The allegations made by Atiku regarding the election results have caused controversy in Nigeria. Tinubu has not yet responded to the claims made against him in the Austrian newspaper, but whether he will address the matter remains to be seen. The election’s outcome has also brought into question the integrity of the electoral process in Nigeria and the need for reform.
