Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has raised concerns over an unexpected payment into his private bank account, describing the transaction as a possible breach of financial privacy and security.
Atiku, through a statement issued on Thursday by his spokesman, Phrank Shaibu, disclosed that the transfer came from an individual he does not know and carried the narration, “Contribution Electioneering Campaign.” He said neither he nor his political team requested, approved or had prior knowledge of the payment.
The former vice president described the development as disturbing, especially because the account involved is a private account whose details are not publicly available. He questioned how unknown individuals were able to obtain his confidential banking information.
“The account is a strictly private one whose details are not in the public domain. This raises a fundamental question: How did unknown persons obtain the confidential banking details of a private citizen?” Atiku said.
He warned that the incident goes beyond his personal situation, arguing that if the financial details of a former vice president and presidential candidate could be accessed without consent, ordinary Nigerians may also be vulnerable to similar breaches.
Atiku further expressed concern that the information could have been obtained through individuals with privileged access to banking records. He said any such action would represent a serious abuse of power and could expose account holders to risks from criminals, including fraudsters and other security threats.
The ADC presidential candidate said security agencies and the public had been alerted over what he described as another suspicious development as political activities ahead of the next general elections intensify.
“We therefore put the Nigerian public – and the security agencies – on notice about this latest incident in a litany of suspicious activities leading up to next year’s general elections,” he said.
Despite the development, Atiku insisted he would remain focused on his political agenda and efforts to provide what he described as credible leadership solutions for Nigerians. He accused those behind the incident of attempting to create distractions through what he called character assassination tactics.
