Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has defended his decision to oppose former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s controversial third-term agenda, declaring that he remains proud of his role in blocking what he described as an attempt to undermine Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.
Atiku’s response came a day after Obasanjo said choosing him as his running mate for the 1999 presidential election was the biggest mistake of his presidency.
The former president made the remark during a fireside conversation with veteran entertainer and activist Charles Oputa at the public presentation of 999: A Memoir in Tribute to Late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa in Lagos.
Responding in a statement issued on Saturday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku dismissed Obasanjo’s remarks as an unsuccessful attempt to alter historical events and insisted that he would never apologise for defending the Constitution.
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“I am proud that I stood against the third-term agenda. I am proud that I stood by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I have no apology whatsoever for frustrating every attempt to subvert our democracy for personal ambition.
“If Chief Obasanjo’s bitterness stems from my refusal to support an unconstitutional third term, then I wear that resentment as a badge of honour. No individual, regardless of his status or accomplishments, is bigger than the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Constitution is supreme, and I chose Nigeria over personal loyalty,” Atiku said.
The former vice-president argued that the struggle against the proposed tenure extension went beyond personal differences, describing it as a defining moment for Nigeria’s democratic…
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