Atiku Betrayed Obasanjo, Later Split PDP And ADC – Fani-Kayode

Nigeria’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Femi Fani-Kayode, recalled demanding the removal of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar from Federal Executive Council (FEC) meetings on two occasions over what he described as his betrayal of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Naija News reports that Fani-Kayode, who was Minister of Aviation at the time, made the disclosure in an article titled, “The Seventh Bid of Waziri.”

He said Atiku’s conduct towards Obasanjo became so troubling that he confronted him during full Cabinet sessions, in the presence of other members of the Federal Executive Council.

According to Fani-Kayode, the first incident ended with Obasanjo intervening to save Atiku from the embarrassment.

He said, “Atiku betrayed Obasanjo to such a point that I, as Minister of Aviation at the time, was constrained to demand that he should be thrown out of Cabinet meetings on two separate occasions during full sessions of Cabinet.

“I did this during the course of the meeting and in the presence of every single Cabinet member, and when I did so there was pin-drop silence in the Cabinet chambers.

“The first time, Obasanjo saved him from the humiliation and appealed to the other Ministers and me to allow him to stay whilst he sat there looking daggers at me and clearly in a state of shock.”

Fani-Kayode said the confrontation was repeated a few weeks later during another Cabinet meeting, when he again demanded that Atiku leave the chamber.

He said he threatened that cabinet members would walk out if Atiku refused to leave, leaving him to conduct the Federal Executive Council meeting alone with Obasanjo.

“The second time, which was a few weeks later, I made another demand in our Cabinet meeting under ‘other matters’ that if he did not get up and leave the chamber as a consequence of his betrayals and treachery against our President, then we the Ministers would walk out and leave him to conduct the Federal Executive Council meeting alone with the President,” Fani-Kayode said.

He said Obasanjo again intervened but this time compelled Atiku to apologise to the entire Cabinet.

“Obasanjo again appealed to us to allow him to stay but compelled him to apologise to the entire Cabinet there and then for his treachery and outrageous behaviour, all motivated by the fact that he wanted to topple the President and take his place,” he added.

According to Fani-Kayode, Atiku apologised and was allowed to remain at the meeting, but never attended another Cabinet meeting afterwards.

“Atiku apologised there and then to the entire Cabinet and consequently was allowed to stay at the Federal Executive Council meeting, but he never attended another Cabinet meeting after that,” he said.

Fani-Kayode described the incidents as evidence of Atiku’s political ambition while serving as Vice President, alleging that he coveted Obasanjo’s position.

“This episode proves how over-ambitious he was as Vice President and how he coveted the seat of the man who brought him out of obscurity in Adamawa State and made him his Vice President.

“He repaid Obasanjo’s good with evil just as he later repaid Tinubu’s, Buhari’s and the old PDP’s good with evil in later years,” he said.

Fani-Kayode also accused the former Vice President of damaging both the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in his pursuit of the presidency.

“Today he is so desperate to win the presidential election that he has not only destroyed his old party, the PDP, by splitting it into two, but he also did the same to the ADC, his new one, by breaking it in two and driving the Obi/Kwankwaso faction out to join a new party called the NDC,” he said.

Fani-Kayode also accused Atiku of consistently opposing power rotation to the South since leaving office in 2007.

“Atiku, on the other hand, revels in subversion and believes that Nigeria was established for his benefit alone. This is a man who has consistently opposed and fought against the idea of power shift to the South ever since he left office in 2007,” he said.

He cited Atiku’s political contests and alliances over the years, including his challenge to former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2011, his role in the coalition that removed Jonathan from power in 2015, his emergence as the PDP’s presidential candidate in 2022, and his 2023 presidential contest against Bola Tinubu and Peter Obi.

Fani-Kayode said Atiku was again seeking the presidency in 2027.

“He enunciated that notion and willingly espoused that grave and grievous injustice. He challenged Goodluck Jonathan in 2011, stayed with the coalition that removed him from power in 2015, took the PDP ticket from Nyesom Wike in 2022, ran against Bola Tinubu and Peter Obi in 2023 and is doing so again in 2027,” he said.

He concluded by accusing Atiku of showing “contempt for the South,” arguing that he had maintained that position even during periods when political leaders advocated power rotation in the interest of fairness and equity.