The Presidential Campaign Council of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has challenged the All Progressives Congress (APC) to produce any court judgment convicting its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, of corruption.
The demand came in response to a statement by APC spokesman Felix Morka, who on Thursday declared Atiku unfit for the presidency over alleged past corruption cases.
In a strongly worded counter-statement, Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Campaign Council and Atiku’s spokesperson, described Morka’s remarks as a “grubby attempt to conduct a trial by insult.”
Shaibu argued that the APC spokesman’s allegations failed to address pressing concerns of ordinary Nigerians, including the rising cost of food, fuel, transportation and electricity.
“Morka piles rumour upon insinuation, pronounces sentence in an APC press release and expects Nigerians to mistake his fury for evidence. He may shout like a prosecutor and posture like a judge, but he cannot manufacture a conviction,” Shaibu said.
“If he has a judgment against Atiku, let him produce it. If he does not, he should stop parading his allegations as the verdict of a court.”
Shaibu accused Morka of treating mere allegations against Atiku as established facts and called him “an untutored spin doctor for a party caught in the conundrum of a sinking regime.”
The ADC council also criticised Morka’s warning that Atiku should be kept away from the national treasury. It pointed to allegations and legal proceedings involving President Bola Tinubu in the United States.
Shaibu referenced a US federal court affidavit concerning an investigation into narcotics trafficking and financial transactions. He claimed the document mentioned individuals whose names appeared in records linked to Tinubu, including transfers, a bank introduction, a $5,000 cashier’s cheque, and company documents.
He further stated that the affidavit documented banking records involving First Lady Oluremi Tinubu and described her and her husband as associates in the context of the investigation.
The council also cited a 2025 US federal court ruling that allegedly acknowledged Tinubu as a subject of a criminal investigation involving the FBI and DEA, as well as an FBI search for the names “Bola” and “Tinubu.”
Shaibu called on the President to support full lawful disclosure of the relevant records, rejecting the Presidency’s characterisation of the ongoing US litigation as merely a civil dispute over access to records.
The ADC further recalled that Tinubu appeared before the Code of Conduct Tribunal in 2011 over allegations of operating foreign bank accounts while serving as Lagos State governor. The charges were struck out after the tribunal found that the Code of Conduct Bureau had not followed the required procedure.
On the Mambilla arbitration, Shaibu accused Morka of misrepresenting the tribunal’s findings. He said the tribunal questioned an explanation concerning a $500,000 payment but did not find that Atiku received a bribe or used his office to secure any contract. The tribunal also held that there was actually no contract.
The council also referenced a 2010 United States Senate report, stating that it examined certain transfers but did not establish Atiku’s criminal guilt or show that he sought or accepted a bribe.
Shaibu insisted that the APC must apply the same standard of respect for official records when discussing Atiku as it demands for others.
