Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has challenged President Bola Tinubu to address records surrounding a $460,000 civil forfeiture case in the United States, rather than attacking the American lobbying firm he hired to represent his interests in Washington.
Atiku made the remarks in a statement issued on Wednesday through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, in response to comments by Sunday Dare, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Public Communications.
The controversy began after Dare criticised Atiku’s decision to engage the US lobbying firm Von Batten-Montague-York, cautioning against claims that the firm or its managing partner, Karl Von Batten, had special access to US President Donald Trump, his administration, or the ability to influence ongoing court proceedings.
However, Atiku’s camp accused the Presidency of deliberately avoiding what it described as the more important issues. Shaibu argued that rather than addressing questions raised by historical US judicial records, the Tinubu administration had chosen to focus attention on Atiku’s lobbyist.
Atiku reportedly hired the Washington-based lobbying firm in March in a deal worth $1.2 million to protect and strengthen his reputation in the United States.
According to documents filed with the US Department of Justice under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, one of the firm’s responsibilities was to counter what it described as the Nigerian government’s lobbying narratives in Washington.
The lobbying firm reportedly stated in July that it had begun sharing US Department of Justice records relating to historical drug-trafficking allegations concerning Tinubu with members of the Trump administration, Congress and senior congressional staff.
Defending the engagement, Shaibu insisted that Atiku’s relationship with the lobbying firm was not secret, noting that the arrangement was publicly registered with the US Department of Justice.
He then challenged President Tinubu to directly address why his name appeared in historical US federal narcotics and money-laundering records and why a US District Court entered a decree involving the forfeiture of $460,000 allegedly held in an account in his name.
“These are not documents written by Atiku Abubakar. They were not manufactured by Karl Von Batten. They form part of an American judicial record,” Shaibu said.
Shaibu, however, acknowledged that a civil forfeiture does not amount to a criminal conviction, but maintained that the existence of the court records could not simply be dismissed through political attacks on Atiku or his lobbyist.
The former vice president’s camp also accused the Tinubu administration of hypocrisy for criticising Atiku’s $1.2 million lobbying deal, insisting that the engagement was properly documented and legally registered in the United States.
The latest exchange has further intensified the political war of words between Atiku and the Tinubu administration, with both sides trading accusations as political activities and alliances ahead of the 2027 presidential election continue to generate heated debate.
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