Again, Obasanjo Hits Atiku, Says He Regrets Choosing Him as Vice President
The strained relationship between former President Olusegun Obasanjo and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has deteriorated further with the former president again stating that picking Atiku as his running mate in the 1999 presidential election was the greatest mistake he made while in office.
Obasanjo’s latest scathing remark about Atiku was not the first time he would make such a comment about his former deputy.
Meanwhile, Atiku, who is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the 2027 general election, yesterday stated that no amount of bitterness would erase either the constitutional stand he took against the infamous third-term agenda or the pivotal role he played in Obasanjo’s personal and political journey, insisting that he chose Nigeria and democracy over his former boss.
Obasanjo had in June 2022 told students from select secondary schools who participated in the final of the National Exhibition and Awards organised by Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship (SAGE) in Abeokuta, Ogun State that picking Atiku as his deputy was one of the many genuine mistakes he made in the course of his public life.Politics
The two statesmen had also recently engaged in a verbal war over an allegation by Obasanjo that Atiku bribed a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, the late Hon. Ghali Umar Na’Abba, with N5 million to get him removed from office as president before the 2003 elections.
The former president made the latest scathing remark on Friday during a fireside chat with veteran entertainer and activist, Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charly Boy, in Lagos.
The occasion was the unveiling of Charly Boy’s foundation and his memoir, ‘999: A Memoir in Tribute to Late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa.’
A video of the event was posted on iWitnessLive TV’s YouTube channel.
Obasanjo, who was responding to a question on the biggest mistake he made as president, said no active leader could claim to have served without making mistakes, and described his choice of vice president as one he would not repeat.
“What I have found in my own life is that what could have been all my life… mistakes that could have been fatal, God had taken care of them for me,” Obasanjo said.
When Charly Boy asked the former president to name one mistake, Obasanjo replied, “Mistake when I was in government. The man I picked as my running mate, my number two — if I had known him as I came to know him later, I would not have picked him.”
When Charly Boy sought clarification on whether he was referring to Atiku, Obasanjo replied, “My vice president. I don’t know what name you want to give him, but my vice president, I mean that.”
He insisted that, in retrospect, he would not have chosen Atiku as his deputy.
“Of course, what I know about him later — well, thank God — because God did not allow his actions and reactions to overwhelm me, or to divert my own focus from Nigeria, or to harm Nigeria even,” he said.
“And there’s no bitterness, because he did things he believed he should do, and God did the things God had to do, which enabled me to achieve what I was able to achieve.”
Obasanjo also reflected on the Nigerian Civil War, rejecting suggestions that it amounted to genocide and insisting that the military campaign was aimed at preserving the country’s unity.
“The civil war was traumatic to all Nigerians. It hurt some maybe a little bit harder than others, depending on where, but the civil war was bad for all Nigerians,” he said.
According to him, he took deliberate steps during the war to minimise civilian casualties, citing the recapture of Owerri as an example.
“I did not drop a single bomb inside Owerri, because it would be destructive — it would have killed innocent civilians. I dropped my bombs short of Owerri and beyond Owerri, to warn people that we are coming home,” he said.
I Chose Nigeria, Democracy over Obasanjo, Says Former VP
Responding to Obasanjo’s latest attack on him, Atiku described the former president’s public outburst against him as yet another failed attempt to rewrite history, stressing that no amount of bitterness will erase either the constitutional stand he took against the third-term agenda or the pivotal role he played in Obasanjo’s personal and political journey.
In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said he watched the former president’s interview with profound sadness, not anger, because it reflected the disposition of a man who allowed personal resentment to cloud historical truth.
Atiku said the genesis of Obasanjo’s hostility towards him was well known to Nigerians.
“I am proud that I stood against the third-term agenda. I am proud that I stood by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I have no apology whatsoever for frustrating every attempt to subvert our democracy for personal ambition,” Atiku said.
“If Chief Obasanjo’s bitterness stems from my refusal to support an unconstitutional third term, then I wear that resentment as a badge of honour. No individual, regardless of his status or accomplishments, is bigger than the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Constitution is supreme, and I chose Nigeria over personal loyalty,” he added.
The former vice president noted that the struggle against the third-term agenda was never about two individuals but about preserving Nigeria’s constitutional democracy for future generations.
“The Nigerian people won that battle. Democracy won that battle. History has already delivered its verdict.”
He said it was therefore unfortunate that the same man whose unconstitutional ambition was resisted sought to sit in judgment over those who defended the Constitution.
Atiku said it was particularly instructive that barely 24 hours before Obasanjo’s latest outburst, the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, publicly paid glowing tribute to the economic management team he led, describing it as “the best Nigeria has ever had.”
“Whether or not the timing is merely coincidental is for Nigerians to judge. What is beyond dispute, however, is that while distinguished Nigerians who served at the highest levels continue to acknowledge my contributions to one of Nigeria’s most successful periods of economic management, Chief Obasanjo appears determined to diminish them.”
“Chief Obasanjo may choose not to appreciate my role in building one of Nigeria’s most prosperous economic eras, but history has been far kinder. The record speaks for itself, and so do the testimonies of those who worked closely with that administration.”
Atiku further stated that Nigerians also deserve to remember the other side of history which Chief Obasanjo conveniently omits.
“History records that while Chief Obasanjo was in prison, I stood firmly by him. I supported his family, worked tirelessly with other patriots for his release and never wavered in my belief that he deserved his freedom.”
“When he eventually regained his freedom, he had little to his name. I received him, clothed him, ensured he was properly cared for and extended every support necessary to help him regain his footing. Beyond that, I mobilised political structures, built alliances and made enormous personal and political sacrifices that culminated in his emergence as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
Stop the Bitterness, It’s Costing You, Amerijoye Tells Obasanjo
In a related development, the Director-General of The Narrative Force, Aare Amerijoye DOT.B, has urged Obasanjo to put aside what he described as lingering bitterness towards Atiku, warning that such resentment could ultimately damage the former leader’s legacy more than it could affect his former deputy.
Amerijoye made the appeal in an open letter titled, ‘Baba, This Bitterness is Costing You More Than It Is Costing Atiku’, which was a response to Obasanjo’s July 23, 2026 letter to former Ogun State governor, Olusegun Osoba, where the former president reportedly revisited allegations against Atiku.
Questioning the timing of the letter, Amerijoye argued that it was no coincidence that the allegations resurfaced as the country prepares for another presidential election.
“You chose the eve of a presidential election year. You chose the season when Atiku Abubakar is the candidate of the African Democratic Congress. A letter to Osoba does not need Atiku. That Atiku is in it at all tells us who the letter was really written for,” he stated.
He maintained that historical records showed Atiku played a decisive role in Obasanjo’s emergence as president in 1999, insisting that the former vice president voluntarily stepped aside to support Obasanjo’s candidacy and later declined to challenge him for the presidency in 2003.
“Before he ever became your deputy, Atiku Abubakar chose not to pursue a presidential ambition he could legitimately have pursued. Instead, he threw his weight behind your candidacy and helped rally support for you.”
The Narrative Force chief further argued that Atiku financed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in its formative years, mobilised political support across the country, assembled key members of Obasanjo’s campaign organisation and persuaded influential stakeholders to back his presidential bid.
“He was an organiser, financier, strategist, negotiator and coalition builder whose contributions were instrumental to your emergence as President in 1999. History cannot be rewritten.”
Amerijoye also rejected allegations that Atiku plotted against Obasanjo while serving as vice president, noting that despite investigations conducted during the Obasanjo administration, no court convicted the former vice president of any wrongdoing.
“You probed him. You set your agencies on him. You built a case to keep him off the ballot in 2007, and the Supreme Court restored his name. After all of it, there was no conviction.”
He further criticised the former president for relying on claims allegedly made by deceased individuals without making documentary evidence public.
