Why Atiku’s name change affidavit was signed on a Saturday — Aide

The Media Adviser to the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, Mr Paul Ibe on Sunday explained why an affidavit backing the change in names of the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last election was signed on a Saturday. Addressing a press conference in Abuja, Paul Ibe said the clarification became […]

The Media Adviser to the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, Mr Paul Ibe on Sunday explained why an affidavit backing the change in names of the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last election was signed on a Saturday.

Addressing a press conference in Abuja, Paul Ibe said the clarification became necessary to puncture holes picked by aides to President Bola Tinubu on alleged discrepancy in Atiku’s names.

According Ibe media handlers of President Tinubu are only looking for persons to drag along with the president in his certificate scandal, adding that Atiku does not want to be placed in the same stead, adding that effort by Tinubu’s camp to find fault with Atiku certificate is an exercise in futility.

Ibe said: “We conducted research into the registry of the Lagos State High Court in the same year, 1973, to see if it was really an absurdity to have court papers signed on a Saturday.

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“The outcome of our findings showed clearly that there are court papers that were signed on Saturdays in the year 1973.  Atiku Abubakar’s affidavit was not the only one signed on Saturday.”

He explained that since the discovery of documents with Chicago State University (CSU) and other alleged certificate forgeries and impersonation by President  Tinubu, there have been attempts by many of his media aides to create a parallel narrative about the public life of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

“It was obvious from the start of their journey into futility that what the media aides and supporters of Bola A. Tinubu were doing was a random bite of the public profile of Atiku Abubakar until they found an item they could chomp with their filthy teeth.

“So, eventually, they found that the affidavit that Atiku Abubakar deposed to in August 18, 1973, wherein he expressed his wishes to be publicly known as Atiku Abubakar was signed on a Saturday.

“For them, it isn’t important that the person called Bola A. Tinubu was discovered to be the name of a female, nor was it important that Bola A. Tinubu forged a certificate he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission or that Bola A. Tinubu is the Guinea pig student of the Government College Lagos, who was used to test run the school four years before it was founded.

“All that mattered to them is to pick a hole in Atiku Abubakar’s public profile”, he said.

Meanwhile ahead of the Supreme Court hearing of the February 25, 2023 Presidential Election Appeal, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said they were confident that “guided by the provisions of the law, the body of evidence, circumstances and facts presented before it” the Apex Court will deliver judgment in their favour.

The main opposition party in a statement on Sunday said it believes that “the issues of the February 2023 Presidential election; the barefaced violation of rules and the laws, the brazen manipulations and falsifications in perversion of our electoral process have put our democracy in a precarious situation.”

The statement signed by Debo Ologunagba, National Publicity Secretary of the party also said: “Nigerians and indeed the whole world look forward to the Supreme Court for justice in the hope that the Court will apply the laws, including the express provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), the Electoral Act, 2022 and INEC Guidelines and Regulations in delivering substantial justice in the matter.

“The earnest expectation of Nigerians and lovers of democracy across the world is that the Supreme Court will use this case to firmly validate the maxim that the Judiciary is the last hope of the common man.

“Nigerians are therefore optimistic in hoping that the Supreme Court will dispense substantial Justice according to law and fact in the Appeal.”