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Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has expressed concern after an unexpected credit was made to one of his personal bank accounts, suggesting that the incident may indicate a compromise of his confidential banking information.
Atiku, who is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, disclosed this in a statement on Friday signed by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu.
The statement said the transfer was made by an individual unknown to the former vice president, with the narration, “Contribution Electioneering Campaign.”
“Neither His Excellency nor his campaign solicited, authorised or has any knowledge of the individual or entity behind the unauthorised payment,” the statement read.
According to the statement, the circumstances surrounding the transaction were “deeply troubling” as the account was strictly private and its details were not publicly available.
“The account is a strictly private one whose details are not in the public domain. This raises a fundamental question: How did unknown persons obtain the confidential banking details of a private citizen?” it added.
Atiku said the alleged access to his banking information raised broader concerns about the protection of Nigerians’ financial privacy.
“If the private banking information of a former Vice President and a leading presidential candidate can be accessed and deployed for reasons yet unknown then no Nigerian’s financial privacy is safe,” the statement quoted him as saying.
The former vice president also expressed concern over the possibility that the information was obtained through individuals with privileged access.
“Even more disturbing, is the suspicion that such confidential information may have been obtained through persons with privileged access,” the statement said.
Atiku warned that a breach of confidential banking information could expose citizens to security threats.
“If established, this would amount to a grave abuse of power capable of exposing the account holder to kidnappers, terrorists, bandits, fraudsters and other criminal elements,” the statement added.
The ADC presidential candidate said security agencies and Nigerians had been notified of the development, describing it as part of a series of suspicious activities ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“We therefore put the Nigerian public — and the security agencies — on notice about this latest incident in a litany of suspicious activities leading up to next year’s general elections,” he said.
Atiku urged Nigerians not to be distracted by what he described as attempts to smear his reputation as political activities intensify ahead of the elections.
“As political activities gather momentum, Nigerians should not be distracted by these tired tactics that smack of character assassination,” the statement read.
“Such desperate antics have failed before and will fail again,” he added.
The former vice president maintained that he remained committed to providing what he described as credible leadership and practical solutions to Nigeria’s challenges.
“The Waziri Adamawa remains focused on offering Nigerians credible leadership and practical solutions to the nation’s challenges,” the statement said.