The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the last general elections, Atiku Abubakar, on Monday accused the government of President Muhammadu Buhari of plotting to frame former President Olusegun Obasanjo for a crime.
The aim of the alleged plot, according to him is to stop the former president from continuously criticising the administration.
The former vice president, who served with Obasanjo, also accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, of disseminating falsehoods in an attempt to cause disaffection between him and his former boss on one hand, and between Obasanjo and Nigerians in general.
In a statement by his media office on Monday, Atiku also insisted that his son-in-law, Babalele Abdullahi, did not donate any money to Obasanjo’s library.
The statement said: “The truth is that there is desperation on the part of the current administration to rope in former President Olusegun Obasanjo into a crime as a way of silencing his voice, which they see as the preeminent critical voice against the misrule that they have foisted on Nigerians.
“Atiku stated that for the avoidance of doubt, his son-in-law, Mallam Babalele Abdullahi, did not donate any money in cash to the Olusegun Obasanjo Library.
“He said it is true that Abdullahi facilitated the donation of N50m to the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library.
He added that many other individuals, including civic-minded traditional rulers, state governors, bankers and captains of industry also donated to the library.
Atiku further alleged that in furtherance of its attempt to rope Obasanjo into a crime, Buhari’s government officials asked the Federal Inland Revenue Service to “falsely and libellously” include Obasanjo Farm in a published list of tax evaders, along with the names of other PDP sympathisers.
