Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has called on President Bola Tinubu to apologise to Nigerians and resign over the controversy surrounding the accounts of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC).
Atiku’s demand followed conflicting testimonies reportedly given by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) concerning the disputed financial transactions linked to the PFIPC.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, the former vice president said the CBN’s testimony before the House of Representatives contradicted an earlier account presented by the OAGF.
He described the development as a serious credibility crisis for the Tinubu administration, arguing that the conflicting accounts had raised questions about transparency and accountability within the government.
Atiku said President Tinubu owed Nigerians an apology over the controversy and should take immediate steps to restore public confidence through an independent investigation.
According to him, the President would have lost the moral authority to remain in office if he failed to address the matter decisively.
“President Tinubu owes Nigerians an unreserved apology for presiding over this unprecedented collapse of public accountability. If he cannot immediately restore public confidence through a genuinely independent investigation and ensure that everyone responsible is held to account, then he has forfeited the moral authority to continue in office. The honourable course is simple: apologise to Nigerians and resign,” Atiku said.
The former vice president expressed concern over what he described as contradictory positions from two key institutions responsible for the country’s financial and monetary affairs.
He argued that the conflicting accounts had created an atmosphere of uncertainty and raised concerns about the credibility of the administration’s handling of the issue.
“When two of your most sensitive financial and monetary authorities publicly contradict each other on the same transaction, no serious leader needs a clairvoyant to know that his administration is trapped in a web of deception and a profound crisis of credibility. The President cannot continue to watch from the sidelines while his government tears itself apart with conflicting narratives,” he said.
Atiku also questioned President Tinubu’s position on the conflicting accounts, asking the President to clarify which of the two narratives he accepted.
He said the President’s continued silence on the matter could further fuel public suspicion and urged him to order an independent investigation into the controversy.
“If he believes neither, why has he not acted? Every day he delays ordering a truly independent investigation, he deepens public suspicion that preserving his administration’s image has taken precedence over establishing the truth,” Atiku stated.
The former vice president also criticised the Attorney-General of the Federation for what he described as silence on the issue, saying the lack of a clear position from the office had further compounded the controversy.
He called on the National Assembly to summon the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria to appear together before the relevant investigative committee and give evidence under oath.
According to Atiku, such a process would help Nigerians understand the circumstances surrounding the disputed transaction and establish a clear account of what transpired.
He further argued that the controversy had moved beyond a disagreement over financial records, describing it as a broader test of the Tinubu administration’s commitment to transparency, accountability and institutional oversight.
“The PFIPC scandal has ceased to be merely about disputed accounts. It has become a referendum on President Tinubu’s integrity and competence. If a single individual could allegedly orchestrate a scheme that has thrown two of Nigeria’s most critical financial and monetary authorities into public contradiction, Nigerians are entitled to ask how many other abuses may have escaped detection because of weak oversight and institutional failure,” he said.
