Daud Olatunji
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has launched a scathing rebuttal to former President Olusegun Obasanjo over the latter’s claim that choosing him as running mate in the 1999 presidential election was the greatest mistake of his presidency, accusing the ex-president of attempting to rewrite history.
Atiku, who also revived the long-standing controversy surrounding Obasanjo’s failed third-term bid, declared that he had “no apology whatsoever” for opposing what he described as an unconstitutional attempt to extend the former president’s tenure.
The former vice-president made the remarks in a statement issued on Saturday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, barely 24 hours after Obasanjo criticised him during a fireside conversation with veteran entertainer and activist, Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charly Boy.
Obasanjo had spoken at the public presentation of Charly Boy’s foundation and memoir, 999: A Memoir in Tribute to Late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa, in Lagos, where he described his decision to pick Atiku as his running mate in the 1999 election as “the biggest mistake” of his presidency.
Responding, Atiku said Obasanjo was entitled to his opinions but not to what he termed a distortion of historical facts.
“There comes a point when silence in the face of repeated distortions of history ceases to be a virtue,” Atiku said.
“Chief Obasanjo is entitled to his opinions. He is entitled to his personal grievances. What he is not entitled to are his own facts.”
The former vice-president defended his opposition to the controversial third-term agenda pursued during the Obasanjo administration, insisting that his actions were driven by his commitment to the Constitution and Nigeria’s democratic future.
“I am proud that I stood against the third-term agenda. I am proud that I stood by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I have no apology whatsoever for frustrating every attempt to subvert our democracy for personal ambition,” he stated.
According to Atiku, his refusal to support a constitutional amendment for a third presidential term remains one of the defining moments of Nigeria’s democratic journey.
“If Chief Obasanjo’s bitterness stems from my refusal to support an unconstitutional third term, then I wear that resentment as a badge of honour. No individual, regardless of his status or accomplishments, is bigger than the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Constitution is supreme, and I chose Nigeria over personal loyalty,” he added.
Atiku argued that the battle against the third-term agenda transcended personal differences between him and Obasanjo.
“The Nigerian people won that battle. Democracy won that battle. History has already delivered its verdict,” he said.
The former vice-president also rejected Obasanjo’s assessment of his contributions to their administration, claiming historical records showed that he played a critical role in the former military ruler’s return to political relevance after his imprisonment under the late Gen. Sani Abacha’s regime.
He disclosed that he stood by Obasanjo throughout his incarceration, supported his family and joined other political associates in campaigning for his release.
“When he eventually regained his freedom, he had little to his name. I received him, clothed him, ensured he was properly cared for and extended every support necessary to help him regain his footing,” Atiku claimed.
He further asserted that he mobilised political structures, forged strategic alliances and made enormous personal and political sacrifices that culminated in Obasanjo’s emergence as president in 1999.
Despite their fractured relationship, Atiku said he had no regrets over the support he rendered to the former president.
“When God gives you the opportunity to lift another human being, you do so without expecting repayment. Acts of kindness are matters of conscience, not commercial transactions,” he said, adding that “gratitude should never be replaced with revisionism.”
The former vice-president also cited recent comments credited to the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, whom he said acknowledged the achievements of the economic management team he led during the Obasanjo administration.
He accused Obasanjo of attempting to diminish his contributions despite what he described as recognition from senior public officials.
Atiku further expressed disappointment that the former president had chosen to revisit old political disagreements at a time Nigerians were facing worsening economic hardship, insecurity and unemployment.
“The 2027 election should be about rebuilding Nigeria, restoring security, reviving the economy and giving hope to the next generation—not reopening old political wounds,” he said.
He added that although he had exercised restraint over the years out of respect for Obasanjo and the office he once occupied, he would no longer remain silent whenever historical facts were, in his view, being distorted.
“I have chosen the path of service over resentment, vision over vendetta and national renewal over personal recrimination,” Atiku said.
“History is stubborn. It cannot be rewritten by bitterness, nor erased by repeated falsehoods. In the end, history will render its verdict—and so will the Nigerian people.”
The latest exchange marks another chapter in the long-running political rift between the two leaders, whose relationship deteriorated sharply during the closing years of the Obasanjo administration, particularly over the failed attempt to amend the Constitution to allow a third presidential term.
The disagreement eventually culminated in Atiku’s departure from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party before the 2007 general election.
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