Atiku Accuses Tinubu of Complicity in Almajiri Budget, PFIPC Irregularities

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, a prominent figure and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, on Tuesday leveled serious allegations against President Bola Tinubu. Atiku claimed that President Tinubu was either directly involved in or unaware of significant irregularities concerning the 2026 budget’s implementation. This accusation follows reports that billions of naira designated for the Almajiri education agency were instead allocated to road construction projects.

In a statement released by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku highlighted these new revelations, alongside controversies surrounding the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC). He suggested that these incidents indicate a consistent pattern of budget manipulation and misuse of public funds under the current administration. The former vice president further stated that the Presidency’s attempts to distance its Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, from the PFIPC scandal have only intensified public skepticism.

Atiku's comments came in response to a recent Daily Trust special investigation, which revealed that the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education received allocations totaling billions of naira for road infrastructure, a mandate completely outside its core educational responsibilities. “The question that naturally arises is this: Since when did the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education become a road construction agency?” Atiku queried. He emphasized that at a time when millions of Nigerian children lack access to education, diverting funds meant for an educational body into road projects is “not merely a distortion of priorities but a cruel betrayal of the very children the Commission was created to serve.”

He further alleged that this development is characteristic of “the now familiar tactic of hiding questionable projects in backwater agencies where public scrutiny is minimal and where funds can be more easily diverted. This is the height of irresponsibility. It is the height of impunity. Indeed, it is the height of evil,” Atiku asserted.

Connecting the budget controversy to the PFIPC allegations, Atiku cited claims made by Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, who has accused senior government officials of demanding billions of naira from him related to the proposed PFIPC. Atiku criticized the Presidency for its inadequate response to these allegations, dismissing mere denials as insufficient. “If Prince Adeyemi is indeed the fraudster that government spokespersons now portray him to be, why has he not been arraigned before a competent court of law since he was first invited for questioning late last year?” he questioned. He also raised concerns about Adeyemi reportedly still operating from the Federal Secretariat and allegedly paying a courtesy visit to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) leadership despite being under investigation.

Atiku maintained that President Tinubu cannot disassociate himself from these issues. “The budget is his budget. The Appropriation Act bears his signature. The agencies involved operate under his administration,” he stated. He added, “If billions of naira can be hidden under agencies with no legal mandate to execute such projects, then either the President approved these distortions or he was completely unaware of what was happening under his watch. The first possibility would amount to complicity. The second would amount to an admission of an absentee presidency where consequential decisions are being taken without the knowledge or supervision of the President.”

The African Democratic Congress chieftain urged the National Assembly to provide explanations for how such alleged irregular appropriations managed to pass legislative review. He stressed that Parliament's role is to act as a guardian of public funds, not merely endorse without scrutiny. Atiku concluded by calling on the Federal Government to initiate “a full, transparent and independent investigation” into both the budget allegations and the PFIPC controversy.

These accusations emerge amidst ongoing public discussions regarding transparency in Nigeria’s budgeting process. Civil society organizations and fiscal accountability advocates have frequently voiced concerns about the inclusion of projects in the budgets of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies that do not align with their statutory mandates. The PFIPC controversy also gained significant political traction after its self-proclaimed Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, made allegations against high-ranking government officials. The Presidency, however, has refuted these claims, labeling the PFIPC a fictitious entity and its self-acclaimed Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, an impostor who forged appointment letters with falsified signatures from Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila to run an illegal agency, as stated by presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga.