Paul Ibe, spokesperson for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has said the comment attributed to his principal about selling the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to friends was ‘a joke taken too far.’
Ibe made the clarification on Sunday during an interview on Trust TV, while speaking about opposition politics and the readiness of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) ahead of the 2027 general election.
Responding to a question comparing Atiku’s position on the petroleum sector with the policies of the Bola Tinubu administration, Ibe rejected the suggestion that Atiku intended to sell the NNPC to personal associates.
“Let me correct you please. That interview was a banter between His Excellency Atiku Abubakar and the reporter, and he made that joke, and that was mischief taken too far about selling it to his friends,” Ibe said.
He added, “It was a joke taken too far, and that should not be the takeaway from that interview. The takeaway should be that all those moribund assets should be disposed of.”
Ibe argued that successive governments have wasted resources maintaining non-performing assets in the oil sector, insisting that privatisation remains a more sustainable option.
“This administration has initiated a process to sell some of these assets. None of the refineries in Kaduna, Port Harcourt, Warri, all over the place, are working, yet people are being paid salaries for doing nothing,” he said.
“Why must we hold on to those assets? Government has no business doing business. Government should create an enabling environment for business.”
Background.
During the build-up to the 2019 presidential election, Atiku, while addressing the business community in Lagos, said he’s committed to privatising the NNPC even if he gets killed.
“I am committed to privatising NNPC, I said it. I swear. Even if they are going to kill me, I will do it,” Atiku had said at the time.
At the same forum, he also stated that he would enrich his friends rather than family members if elected president.
“I am not going to enrich members of my family, but my friends. Are my friends not entitled to be enriched? As long as there is no element of corruption there,” he said.
The comments triggered public criticism, prompting Atiku to later issue a clarification. About a month after the Lagos event, the former Vice President dismissed claims that he intended to sell the NNPC to his friends.
Speaking during a meeting with grassroots leaders in Kaduna State, Atiku said the reports were false, stressing that any sale of the national oil company would be for the benefit of Nigerians.
The former vice president maintained that the NNPC would be sold “to Nigerians for the development of the country” and not to his friends, as alleged.
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