Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has challenged the Federal Government to investigate and prosecute him if it has evidence linking him to the alleged $16bn power expenditure while in office.
Atiku, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, accused the President Bola Tinubu-led government of recycling old allegations to divert attention from questions over the use of revenues saved from petrol subsidy removal.
Atiku, in a statement on Wednesday, issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, said the resurfacing of allegations surrounding power-sector projects, privatization, and public assets was an attempt to shift public attention from the economic hardship confronting Nigerians.
The Olusegun Obasanjo administration’s power sector spending and commitments, commonly cited at about $16bn, became the subject of a House of Representatives probe after his exit from office in 2007.
In 2008, the Umaru Yar’Adua administration raised questions about expenditure on the power sector, with the allegation initially reported as about $11bn, before the figure became commonly cited as $16bn.
In his defence, Obasanjo cited an EFCC investigation and a presidential review process, arguing that these had undermined the allegation that $16bn had simply been squandered.
A report claimed only about $3.7bn of the $10bn budgeted amount had actually been disbursed, with the balance retained in an account at the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Also, an EFCC report published in 2018 reportedly revealed that about N1.2tn had been allocated to NIPP, but only approximately N360.7bn was paid to contractors by the time Obasanjo left office in 2007.
It also reported about N273.65bn spent on PHCN between 1999 and 2007.
Atiku challenged the Tinubu government to account for the resources it had gained since the removal of the petrol subsidy, asking, “Where is the people’s money?”
He said the allegations against him had been repeatedly raised over the years without resulting in any prosecution, despite successive governments having access to the investigative machinery of the state.
“The National Assembly investigated the power projects. I was never invited to answer any allegation of wrongdoing.
“Yes, I chaired the National Council on Privatisation as Vice President. But on the power project, I disagreed with its concept and did not preside over its implementation. The responsible minister did. The same applies to the Aluminium Smelter matter.
“I have repeatedly asked to be investigated. I left office in 2007 and have spent much of the period since then opposing governments in power. If there is evidence that I stole public money, why has no government produced it before a court?
