Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, on Friday raised the alarm over a suspicious credit into one of his private bank accounts, alleging that his confidential banking details may have been compromised.
Phrank Shaibu, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication to Atiku Abubakar, who disclosed this in a statement, said the transfer originated from a person totally unknown to the former Vice President, with the narration “Contribution Electioneering Campaign.”
According to the statement, neither Atiku nor his campaign solicited, authorised or has any knowledge of the individual or entity behind the unauthorised payment.
“The circumstances surrounding the transfer are deeply troubling to His Excellency,” the statement read, noting that the account is a strictly private one whose details are not in the public domain.
Shaibu queried how unknown persons obtained the confidential banking details of a private citizen, warning that if the private banking information of a former Vice President and a leading presidential candidate could be accessed and deployed for reasons yet unknown, then no Nigerian’s financial privacy is safe.
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 read.
The ADC presidential candidate 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.
He 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.
He called on 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.
“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.
