Speech by the Guest Speaker, Atiku Abubakar, GCON, former Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, at the Annual Professor Ademola Popoola Public Lecture, Faculty of Law, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife

Monday 6th March, 2017.

Protocol:

Let me start by dispelling some myths that have been thrown around regarding the calls for the restructuring of the Nigerian federation.

1. It is a myth to say that we do not need restructuring, that all we need is good leadership. While leadership is critical, leaders also operate within structural and institutional constraints, …

LOHO U HIS EXCELLENCY ATIKU ABUBAKAR, GCON, ZEGE MULE U TIV, OR U DONDUN KEN PRESIDENT U NIGERIA KEN ANYOM AA 1999-2007, HEN ORCHIVIRIGH PROFESSOR JAMES AYATSE HEN IYANGE I BUMUN MAN SHI U NGOHOL TOV MBU TOR TIV U SHA UTAAN HEN IYANGE I SHA UNYIIN I UWER U SHA UTAR, KEN INYOM I 2017.

Aondo aver Begha U Tiv Professor James Ayatse. Msugh u kirkir hen iaven I Tiv ve vatsough u man shi i bumugh Tor U Tiv ke tar cii ne. Shamimiyo, …

Former Vice President and chieftain of All Progressives Congress, Atiku Abubakar commends the remarkable, incredible, unflagging and patriotic sacrifices of our military personnel in the line of duty and in the defence of the country.

 The former Vice President made the statement shortly after his arrival from an overseas trip at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Sunday, 15 January 2017.

A statement released by his media office to mark this year’s Armed Forces Remembrance Day, quotes the former Vice President as observing that since the …

A few weeks ago, I met a group of young men in their early twenties still pursuing their tertiary education. More than just being students, they are also young entrepreneurs who have taken it upon themselves to be problem solvers in their society. Their concern for the socio-economic challenges of Nigeria has prompted them to come up with a fresh and innovative idea to contribute their quota to national development efforts.

They have created a free mobile app, called E-Alert, that will mitigate the risk of …

For centuries, reading and writing was the privilege of the few, the upper class and those obliged by religious duty. Yet the ability to read is the world’s most empowering tool without which participation in a healthy democracy is extremely limited. Today, a literate, educated and informed citizenry forms the backbone of democracy – the peoples’ government.

In Nigeria, unfortunately and inexcusably, we are headed in the wrong direction. Here at home, rates of illiteracy are on the rise as a result of prolonged instability and …

The past week has been filled with elation as I have watched my son Abba marry the love of his life, but my heart is heavy over news of the recent Ebola (EVD) outbreak in West Africa, which has claimed the lives of at least 86 Guinean and two Liberian citizens. It is with love for my country and our West African brothers and sisters that I write to spread awareness of the disease, and encourage Nigerian citizens and the Federal Government to take every …

Sometime in January, I was in London on business, and my children quickly arranged a trip to the Emirates Stadium for me. It was to emerge later that it was not a hastily arranged event, but a well planned outing, put together by children of a businessman and politician.

It turned out that my son, Abba, who was appointed to be my escort to the event, was the primary reason why the event was set up in the first place. Abba had a major announcement to …

Being Keynote Address by Atiku Abubakar, GCON, former Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, at the 2013 Conference of the African Council for Communication Education (ACCE) held at the Department of Mass Communication, University of Nigeria, Nsukka.

21 October, 2013.

Protocol

It feels good to once more visit the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I must confess that whenever I step into UNN or Ahmadu Bello University or Obafemi Awolowo University (formerly U of Ife), I have mixed feelings. Such visits bring back memories of when Nigeria and Nigerians …

Boko Haram continues to leave a trail of blood and tears in its wake. In the early hours of Tuesday February 25, barely six months after a similar attack, a band of murderers invaded the Federal Government College in Buni Yadi, Yobe State, wielding explosives and guns and machetes, slaughtering more than 40 boys in cold blood.

As a father and grandfather I am deeply saddened, not just by the latest murders, but by every single life that has been lost to the activities of these …

Q:
Why did you choose APC?

A:
I chose APC, because APC cares deeply about Nigeria, just as I do. I chose APC because the party’s programmes have a lot in common with my own blueprint for change.

In areas such as education, power sector reforms, infrastructure, anti-corruption, employment generation, stimulation of economic growth, better health standards and agriculture.

APC has a lot in common with my own policy objectives for the radical transformation of Nigeria, including the devolution of powers and restructuring of Nigeria to reduce the level of …

Press Statement by Atiku Abubakar, GCON, Turaki Adamawa and former Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria on his Resignation from the PDP and his Joining the APC.

In 2006, as a result of my firm stand in defence of our constitution and our democracy, my supporters and I were pushed out of our party, the Peoples Democratic Party, a party that we worked tirelessly with other compatriots to build as a vehicle to restore democracy to our country.  We later returned to that party in 2009 when a new leadership of the party and the country promised a new direction, a direction of inclusiveness, of …

2013 has been a year of mixed fortunes for Nigerian education.

I recall with much grief the series of school shootings that took place in Borno and Yobe states; tens of young Nigerians cruelly cut down in their hostels and classrooms.

2013 was also the year the ‘A World At School’ campaign gained prominence. The campaign seeks to draw attention to the fact that Nigeria has the largest number of out-of-school children in the entire world. (More than ten million Nigerian children who should be in school …

Former Vice President Abubakar was on Sunday honored by the South African leadership with front-row seat at both the state funeral and private burial ceremonies of global icon, Madiba Nelson Mandela at the late leader’s native home at Qunu, near Mthatha in the Eastern Cape Province.

Mandela’s body was flown here from Pretoria where he had lain is state for three days for a state funeral attended by 4,000 and a private burial witnessed by 400, reserved for key government officials, a few foreign leaders and …

Fifty years ago this weekend, I was seventeen years old and a student in secondary school when I heard the tragic news that would change the lives of millions of people across the globe. I was shocked to hear that the greatest President of my lifetime had been shot dead on a street in Texas.

President John Fitzgerald Kennedy efforts towards peace, diplomacy and international exchange fostered my own ambitions and continue to motivate my dream to put Nigeria on a healthy path towards peace and …

Naturally, pain is the body’s way of communicating that something is wrong. It is a positive sign that a person is still alive but could also be an indicator of how long he or she may have left to live. There is pain in Nigeria.  It comes as a result of our numerous underlying problems that threaten the peace and economic stability of this country. An example of one of those problems is the literacy and skills gap in Nigeria today which has caused us …

Education is the bedrock of any society that defines its development and continuity. It determines the level of literacy in a country and propagates skill acquisition. In fact Dictionary.com defines it “as an act or process of imparting or acquiring particular knowledge or skills as for a profession”[1]. Indeed, skills acquisition forms an integral part of the process of education. It is this privileged position of education that prompted UNICEF to recommend a 26% budget allocation to education, in the budget planning of developing countries. …

In the last couple of weeks, I have been working with my office publicly and privately to find a way of resolving the stand-off between the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and the Federal Government (FG), including the launch of an online petition requesting the immediate end of the strike.

https://www.change.org/petitions/mr-president-of-nigeria-and-the-academic-staff-union-of-universities-asuu-please-end-the-asuu-strike-now

Calling for an end to the strike is in no way suggesting a final solution, but it will provide an opening toward addressing the critical issues causing the strike in the first place. With my experience dealing with strikes while in government, I have first hand …