Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticised President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress over the N10 billion emergency fund announced for Ebola preparedness, demanding an explanation for the whereabouts and utilisation of the money.
Atiku’s position was contained in a statement issued on Friday by his senior media aide, Phrank Shuaibu.
The African Democratic Congress presidential candidate was reacting to comments by presidential spokesman Dele Alake and the APC, which criticised him for raising concerns over the Ebola outbreak in Abuja.
Atiku accused the Presidency and the ruling party of focusing on wordplay by comparing Bola with Ebola instead of addressing questions surrounding the emergency fund.
“Through Dele Alake and the APC, they have made a remarkable discovery: Bola sounds like Ebola. We had not noticed.
“They found the rhyme and wrote a lengthy press statement about it and somehow still could not tell Nigerians where the N10 billion ordered released for Ebola preparedness is,” Atiku said.
He argued that the consequences of Tinubu’s policies were as deadly as Ebola, claiming that rising costs had made food and medicine unaffordable while businesses continued to suffer.
According to Atiku, the Presidency announced on June 9 that Tinubu had ordered the immediate release of N10 billion for Ebola emergency preparedness. However, he said the APC was now claiming that the funds remained untouched following the confirmation of a case in Abuja.
“Was the money released or was it not? If it was released, where is it held, who controls it, and why has it not been used? If it was never released, why was an order for its immediate release announced in June? Publish the release documents,” Atiku demanded.
He also questioned the government’s response timeline, citing a World Health Organization report indicating that the patient developed symptoms on October 7, sought medical attention on October 11 and received confirmation on October 20.
Atiku asked when health authorities first suspected Ebola, when they were alerted, when testing was ordered and when contact tracing began.
He stressed that the 44 identified contacts were people whose health and safety required protection, rather than figures to be used for political publicity.
The former vice president further warned against using the health emergency to interfere with political campaigning or voting ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“Show Nigerians where the money is. Explain the response timeline. Protect health workers. Trace every contact. President Tinubu and the APC owe the country answers, not Bola-Ebola tales,” Atiku said.
