Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned what he described as the weaponisation of hunger and poverty through the distribution of food items in Northern Nigeria under the current administration.
His spokesperson, Phrank Shaibu, disclosed this in a statement issued on Friday to mark Workers’ Day.
Atiku described the recent event involving the First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, where she flagged off the distribution of 100 trucks of rice and N1.2 billion in palliatives to northern states and the Federal Capital Territory, as a calculated political performance staged on the backdrop of widespread hardship.
He said, “What Nigerians are witnessing today is the tragic normalization of poverty under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Families can no longer afford basic meals, inflation has ravaged household incomes, and millions are being pushed daily into extreme deprivation.
“Yet, instead of addressing the structural causes of this crisis, the government has chosen the path of optics—distributing food in carefully choreographed ceremonies while the underlying suffering deepens.
“Since 2023, Northern farmers have suffered declining productivity due to the Tinubu administration’s policy failures and its inability to secure farmlands. Vast agricultural belts have been abandoned to insecurity, leaving farmers displaced and food supply chains severely weakened.
“Ironically, the same government and its promoters now seek to exploit the resulting hardship by turning food into a campaign tool. What the North truly needs is genuine, sustainable food security policies—not campaign lunch packs wrapped in party insignia.
“It is even more troubling that this pattern did not begin today. During Ramadan last year, the president’s son, Seyi Tinubu, embarked on a widely publicized distribution of food items across parts of the North—an exercise presented as charity but clearly designed to test the waters of this now entrenched strategy of politicizing hunger. What was then an experiment has now evolved into a full-blown policy of optics over substance.
“Let it be said without equivocation: Nigerians are not beggars to be pacified with periodic handouts while their livelihoods collapse.”
Recall that the First Lady had on Thursday launched an initiative to distribute N1.2 billion worth of rice as palliatives to Nigerians across selected regions.
Titilope Adako is a talented and intrepid journalist, dedicated to shedding light on the untold stories of Osun State and Nigeria. Through incisive reporting, she tackles a broad spectrum of topics, from politics and social justice to culture and entertainment, with a commitment to accuracy, empathy, and inspiring positive change.
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