Tuesday, September 16, 2025 - Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has decried the high level of hunger among poor Nigerians. Atiku lamented that Nigerians are suffering from poverty under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, which he said seems unable to resolve the problem.
In a statement by his Media Aide, Paul Ibe, Atiku recalled
how poverty and hunger caused revolutions in the Arab world, as well as France
and Russia.
In a statement released today September 15, the African
Democratic Party (ADC) chieftain described the level of hunger in the country
as unacceptable, particularly among the underprivileged and downtrodden.
“Whatever
reform the Tinubu government might claim to be undertaking, the point remains
that food insecurity is a daily occurrence nationwide. There is no
government worth its salt that does not place priority on the welfare and
security of the people” Atiku said
He warned that “most violent socio-political uprisings and
revolutions around the world have been driven by widespread hunger and
unbearable living conditions, especially the paradox of extreme poverty in a
land of abundance.”
The former Vice President emphasized that the primary
responsibility of any government is to ensure the security and welfare of its
citizens.
However, he lamented that under the leadership of President
Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC), millions of Nigerians are
increasingly trapped in poverty and misery.
He further stated that the current state of the nation
offers little reason for optimism, as it is fueling a growing surge in criminal
activities, including large-scale fraud, terrorism, kidnapping, cultism, drug
abuse, and ritual killings, among others.
He advised that the “current unacceptable situation offers
an opportunity for reflection,” citing historical examples such as the French
Revolution, the 1917 Russian Revolution, and the Arab Spring.
He recalled how a young man, driven by unbearable
frustration, set himself ablaze, an act that triggered widespread
socio-political unrest, beginning in Tunisia and spreading across the Middle
East and North Africa.
“Back home
here in Nigeria, it may not be out of place to argue that even the “ENDSARS”
protest was fuelled by the traumatising frustration of hunger and insensitivity
on the part of the government,” he said.
He stressed further that since reforms are made for citizens
and not the other way round, the reforms of this administration should have a
human face.
“Whether the
present powers accept it or not, the reality of our existence is that the poor
are increasingly dying of hunger while the majority of the living poor exists
at the mercy of the ill-advised policies of this government.” he said
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