Tambuwal: Atiku accuses Tinubu of weaponising EFCC to crush opposition

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of turning the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) into a political weapon aimed at silencing opposition figures.

Reacting to the detention of former Sokoto State Governor and Senator, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, Atiku alleged the move was part of a broader strategy to “harass, intimidate, and decimate” members of the opposition coalition.

“The only reason the EFCC has detained the former Governor of Sokoto State, Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, is because he is a member of the opposition Coalition,” Atiku said in a statement. “It is a continuation of the Tinubu-led administration’s agenda to intimidate the opposition.”

The former Vice President, who played a key role in establishing the EFCC during his time in office, accused the government of corrupting the agency’s mandate by using anti-corruption probes as a political tool to force opponents into joining the ruling party.

“Today, anyone who associates with the opposition is a target for phantom corruption allegations. As soon as they are coerced into the political agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, their ‘sins’ are forgiven,” he said, warning that such practices undermine institutional integrity and create fertile ground for corruption.

Atiku said the EFCC was increasingly being used to pressure governors and political leaders into defecting to the ruling party, describing it as part of an “anti-democratic” push towards a one-party state.

He urged civil society, Nigerians, and the international community to condemn the trend, stressing that while the genuine fight against corruption deserves full support, its politicisation must be resisted.

“We will never succumb to these tactics,” Atiku vowed. “The use of anti-corruption agencies as a political agenda must be roundly condemned.”