{"id":783,"date":"2025-08-15T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-15T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tona.today\/?p=783"},"modified":"2025-08-15T02:08:50","modified_gmt":"2025-08-15T02:08:50","slug":"atiku-condemns-tambuwals-arrest-says-efcc-now-a-political-tool","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tona.today\/?p=783","title":{"rendered":"Atiku condemns Tambuwal\u2019s arrest, says EFCC now a political tool"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of weaponising anti-corruption agencies to pressure opposition leaders into defecting to the ruling All Progressives Congress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In a statement posted on his verified Facebook page on Tuesday, Atiku lamented that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has been turned into a political tool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Olamide, Wizkid - Kai! (Official Video)\" width=\"980\" height=\"735\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/7tChMHOrQJM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>On Monday, the EFCC detentained former Sokoto State Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal over alleged financial misconduct, it also invited former Imo State Governor Emeka Ihedioha over corruption allegations during his brief tenure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Reacting, Atiku claimed Tambuwal\u2019s detention was solely because he is a member of the coalition seeking to challenge President Tinubu in the 2027 elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He stated, \u201cThe only reason the EFCC has detained the former Governor of Sokoto State, Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, is because he is a member of the opposition Coalition. It is a continuation of the Tinubu-led administration\u2019s agenda to harrass, intimidate, and decimate the opposition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe reality unfolding before us today is that the Tinubu administration, as with other aspects, has objectified the fight against corruption as a political tool to coerce opposition leaders into the ruling party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe are living witnesses to a growing trend where the state and its operators have assumed the roles of a bully by making corruption and the fight against it a political agenda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cCertainly, that is not the objective for which I worked hard during our administration to create the EFCC.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Atiku stressed that while fighting corruption needs everyone\u2019s support, using it as a political weapon must be condemned by civil society and Nigeria\u2019s international partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The statement read in part, \u201cIt is as though today, anyone who associates with the opposition is a target for phantom corruption allegations and, it is as though, as soon as they are coerced into the political agenda of President Tinubu, their \u2018sins\u2019 are forgiven.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThat, definitely, is not how to build institutions. That, certainly, is not how to fight the monster of corruption. Indeed, such tendencies provide the stimulant for corruption to thrive<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe have seen how the EFCC has been used to empty opposition state governors into the ruling party, and the tea party is not about to end anytime soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhile the genuine fight against corruption is a matter that requires the total support of all Nigerians, the objectification of it as a political agenda should be roundly condemned by all in civil society spaces and friends of Nigeria in the international community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Atiku vowed that opposition leaders would resist any anti-democratic attempts to force the nation into a one-party dictatorship. <a href=\"https:\/\/punchng.com\/atiku-condemns-tambuwals-arrest-says-efcc-now-a-political-tool\/#google_vignette\">(Punch)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of weaponising anti-corruption agencies to pressure opposition leaders into defecting to the ruling All Progressives Congress. In a statement posted on his verified Facebook page on Tuesday, Atiku lamented that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has been turned into a political tool. On Monday, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":784,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[74,971,968,262,973,606,972],"class_list":["post-783","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national","tag-all-progressives-congress","tag-aminu-waziri-tambuwal","tag-atiku-abubakar","tag-bola-tinubu","tag-corruption","tag-economic-and-financial-crimes-commission-2","tag-emeka-ihedioha"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Atiku condemns Tambuwal\u2019s arrest, says EFCC now a political tool - Tona Today<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of weaponising anti-corruption agencies to pressure opposi\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tona.today\/?p=783\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Atiku condemns Tambuwal\u2019s arrest, says EFCC now a political tool - 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