Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has berated President Bola Tinubu’s administration as the “most incompetent and anti-people government in Nigeria’s history”.

In a statement on Mr Tinubu’s second year in office on Thursday, Mr Atiku said, “In just two years, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration has proven to be one of the most incompetent, disconnected, and anti-people governments in Nigeria’s democratic history.

“No previous administration has inflicted this level of hardship on the masses while showing such disregard for transparency, accountability, and responsible leadership.”

Mr Abubakar pointed out that the incumbent president “has not only deepened poverty across the country, but it has also set new records in wasteful public spending”.

The former presidential candidate noted that at a time when millions of Nigerians are struggling to survive, government officials are “living in excess and approving budgets that benefit the elite at the expense of the common man”.

He added, “Today, Nigeria is a nation where the rich get richer, and the poor are punished for trying to survive. 

“It is sad that apart from being the poverty capital of the world, Nigeria has, under this administration, emerged as the unenviable position as the capital of malnourished children in Africa, having beaten Sudan, a nation that is at war. According to the Global Hunger Index 2024, our country is one of the most affected by hunger and malnutrition, occupying the 18th position.”

The former vice-president vowed to rally a coalition of opposition groups to oust Mr Tinubu from office in the 2027 election.

“As opposition leaders and partners committed to the future of Nigeria, we will not stand by and watch democracy be reduced to a tool for elite control. We reject any attempt to turn Nigeria into a one-party state where dissent is silenced and power is abused,” he said.

Meanwhile, Mr Tinubu on Thursday boasted about his administration’s “undeniable progress“.

“Despite the bump in the cost of living, we have made undeniable progress. Inflation has begun to ease, with rice prices and other staples declining,” Mr Tinubu said in a nationwide broadcast to mark his second year in office.