The Former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar has stated that his decision to visit the United states of America to engage with policy and institutional stakeholders in that country was to draw attention to draw attention to “the alarming deterioration of security, governance, and economic stability in Nigeria”
In a statement signed by his long serving media aide, Paul Ibe, the former Vice President noted that “Nigeria is facing a full-blown internal crisis, one that can no longer be downplayed, politicized, or explained away. From the ravaging violence in the North-West and North-East, to the persistent bloodshed in the Middle Belt, and the growing spread of kidnapping and criminality across the country, Atiku warns that the Nigerian state is steadily losing its grip on its most fundamental responsibility: the protection of lives and property.
According to him, the situation has moved beyond isolated incidents to a pattern of systemic failure where “communities are being overrun, livelihoods destroyed, and citizens abandoned to their fate. He argues that any government that cannot guarantee basic security forfeits the moral basis of its mandate.
The former Vice President also pointed to the deepening economic hardship confronting Nigerians, describing it as both severe and avoidable.
For the former Vice President, the rising inflation, a weakened currency, and collapsing purchasing power have pushed millions into distress, while policy inconsistency and lack of strategic direction continue to erode confidence in the economy.
“Nigerians are not just tired, they are being stretched to the limits of endurance” Atiku noted.
He stated that the declining public confidence in governance, accountability, and the electoral process poses a direct threat to national stability, adding that as the country moves towards another election cycle, “any attempt to undermine transparency or manipulate outcomes will carry serious consequences for both unity and legitimacy”.
The chieftain of the African Democratic Congress maintained that the “notion that engaging global partners amounts to inviting foreign interference, stressing that Nigeria does not exist in isolation and cannot pretend that its internal failures have no external implications. He maintains that the world already sees what is happening; the real question is whether Nigerian leaders are prepared to confront it honestly.
He reiterated that only Nigerians will decide Nigeria’s leadership, but insists that international partners have a legitimate interest in the stability, governance standards, and democratic health of a country as strategically important as Nigeria.
According to him, responsible leadership does not hide from scrutiny, it welcomes it as a pathway to improvement.
He emphasised to the government in power that “power is not an entitlement but a responsibility, and that Nigerians expect results, not explanations”.
He called on the government to urgently reset its priorities, restore public confidence, and demonstrate a clear, credible strategy for addressing insecurity and economic decline.
While calling on Nigerians to stand up and speak out, the former Vice President said “no nation survives in silence” while urging Nigerians to “remain vigilant, engaged, and unyielding in their demand for accountability”, emphasizing that real change will not come from outside the country but from the collective will of its people.
Atiku noted that Nigeria stands at a critical juncture and the choice “is between confronting hard truths now or allowing the country to drift further into instability” adding that “the moment demands courage, honesty, and decisive leadership, anything less would be a disservice to the nation and its future”.