2023 Presidency: Atiku challenges Tinubu to TV debate

Peoples Demivratic Party, PDP presidential candidate Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has challenged the former Lagos governor and APC Presidential Candidate Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to a debate ahead of the contest.

Atiku has thus suggested Tinunu makes himself available for a live interview TV interbiee to demonstrate his capacity to lead the country.

“Mr Tinubu has not sat down to do any prolonged interview for obvious reasons. Nigerians have seen him talk in public and can themselves gauge the reason why he is mortified to do so,” Atiku said in a statement signed by his media adviser, Paul Ibe, and made available to the media.

The former vice president faulted APC leader’s claim that he (Atiku) breached the law by engaging in business while serving as a Customs officer.

He said, “Again, the Tinubu campaign betrayed either dishonesty or lack of attention to detail by claiming that Atiku Abubakar said oil contributed 20 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP. That is a lie. What the Waziri said is as follows: Oil only maybe accounts for about 20 per cent of our GDP. The use of the word, ‘maybe,’ by the Waziri was in reflection of the different figures given. While the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics states a figure close to 10 per cent, other multilateral organisations have given a much higher figure of between 15 to 20 per cent.

“So, while the jury is still out, it is right to qualify the contribution of oil and gas as a maybe. However, we do like to point out that Waziri Atiku Abubakar mentioned both the PDP and the APC during the interview and did not forget the name of his own party. It seems the Tinubu campaign organisation (can a disorganised body be called an organisation?) does not know the meaning of rotation of power and micro-zoning. So, we will gladly educate them.”

“Rotation of power refers to a constitutional provision where power is zoned between North and South. Micro-zoning refers to a non-constitutional idea, where power is zoned not between North and South, but amongst geo-political zones. We hope this cures the political illiteracy of the authors of that document. In conclusion, we would like to challenge Bola Tinubu to subject himself to an hour-long interview, as the Waziri did, and if he is able to be as articulate and mentally present as our candidate, then he can talk. Until then, we will only want to remind him and his yes-men that they are not in a position to point fingers when they have not sat on the hot seat,” he added.