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UAE Visa: Tinubu Running Nigeria on Propaganda Policy, Says Atiku
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, has described as false, claims by the Presidency that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) lifted a visa ban on Nigerians, saying President Bola Tinubu has concluded plans to unleash a regime of propaganda as a policy in Nigeria.
The Presidency, last week, claimed that UAE had lifted the ban after Tinubu met with the president of the Middle Eastern country, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
A UAE official later debunked the claims by the presidency, saying the visa ban on Nigerians is still in effect.
Speaking on the development, Atiku, through a statement issued on Sunday by his Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, said the claim of the lifting of the visa ban by the UAE is just the “tip of the iceberg” of Tinubu’s plans to unleash a regime of propaganda as a policy in the coming days.
Shaibu noted that Tinubu has already appointed over 15 media aides with the sole aim of pushing misinformation as a policy and distracting Nigerians from the “deep pains his administration has caused them”.
Atiku’s aide said: “From information available to us, Bola Tinubu is set to push propaganda to overdrive as he heads out for the United Nations General Assembly. He will claim to have attracted foreign investments amounting to $100bn but will fail to provide key details. It is all propaganda. It is all a load of baloney.
“In India, he claimed they had received pledges of over $14bn just as his predecessor, President Muhammadu Buhari, claimed in 2018 that he had secured pledges of up to $6bn. This is nothing but audio investments.
“Last month, the NNPC claimed to have obtained a loan of $3bn with which it would help stabilise the naira. We raised the alarm that it was all a ruse to deceive Nigerians. Now, we have been justified as the naira is now approaching $1/N1,000 on the black market.
“After his trip to the UAE, Tinubu claimed the visa ban had been lifted immediately. Now, they have shifted the goalpost after the UAE authorities revealed that the news was false. This is the sort of embarrassment Nigeria will continue to attract in this season of balablu.
“The report by FTSE revealed that Tinubu’s so-called FX unification policy was failing and Nigeria was degraded from frontier market to unclassified. Having failed to bring economic rebirth, he has now recruited over 15 media aides instead of recruiting more economic experts.”
Shaibu further stated that the Federal government failed to put adequate measures in place after the removal of the subsidy on petrol.
He added: “Tinubu removed the petrol subsidy without any plan whatsoever and decided to hand over a few bags of rice to millions of poor Nigerians. Till date, the minimum wage remains N30,000 or $31 per month based on the parallel market exchange rate.
“This is the punishment Nigerians are facing because the election management body failed to do its work on February 25. This is a manifestation of the words of the Holy Book, which says when the righteous lead, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people suffer.
“In the meantime, we ask Nigerians to remain patient as the judicial authorities do their job in righting the electoral fraud that has brought Nigerians to their knees.”
World-renowned boxer Anthony Joshua on Monday survived a ghastly road accident in Makun, Ogun State.
Eyewitnesses report that the incident occurred along a busy highway of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.
The vehicle carrying Joshua, a Lexus Jeep with the number plate, KRD 850 HN, reportedly collided with a stationary truck under circumstances that are still being investigated.
Joshua reportedly sustained minor injuries, while two persons were said to have died on the spot.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has cautioned that any attempt to hurriedly re‑gazette Nigeria’s new tax laws could undermine parliamentary oversight and set a dangerous constitutional precedent.
Atiku’s warning follows public scrutiny over reports that the Tax Reform Acts signed by President Bola Tinubu differ from the versions passed by the National Assembly. Lawmakers, including Abdussamad Dasuki, raised concerns that the alterations could pose serious legal and constitutional risks, noting that they were not backed by any constitutional framework.
In a statement on X, Atiku said the directive to re-gazette the Acts effectively confirms “that the gazetted version of the Tinubu Tax Act does not reflect what was duly passed by the National Assembly,” calling it “a grave constitutional issue.”
He emphasized that under Section 58 of the 1999 Constitution, a bill only becomes law after passage by both chambers, presidential assent, and gazetting.
“Gazetting is merely an administrative act of publication. It does not create, amend, or validate a law,” Atiku said, adding that any post-passage insertion, deletion, or modification without legislative approval constitutes forgery rather than a clerical error.
Atiku further warned that rushing a re-gazetting while legislative investigations are ongoing “undermines parliamentary oversight and sets a dangerous precedent,” stressing that the only lawful approach is “fresh legislative consideration, re-passage by both chambers, fresh presidential assent, and proper gazetting.”
The former vice president clarified that his position is not opposition to tax reform but a defence of constitutional order.
“This is a defence of the integrity of the legislative process and a rejection of any attempt to normalise constitutional breaches through procedural shortcuts,” he said.
The Federal government has denied wrongdoing, insisting the laws will take effect as scheduled on January 1, 2026, while the National Assembly has directed the issuance of Certified True Copies of the Acts to ensure clarity and accuracy.
Barring unforeseen circumstances, the Labour Party (LP) Presidential Candidate in the 2023 elections, Mr. Peter Obi, is set to formally join the African Democratic Congress (ADC) on December 31, 2025.
The development would put to rest months of speculation about where the former Governor of Anambra State would pitch his tent in the coming elections.
Reports claim that Obi would be defecting with serving senators and other lawmakers elected on the platform of the LP, as well as remnants of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) in the South East region.
Specifically, Obi would be defecting alongside the Senator representing Anambra Central, Victor Umeh; that of Anambra North, Tony Nwoye; Abia South, Enyinnaya Abaribe; PDP chieftain Ben Obi; and members of the Obidient movement in the region.
It is not clear if the Abia State governor, Alex Otti, is part of the planned movement to the ADC.
The governor was recently approached by the PDP to join the party and re-contest his current position in 2027.
Further reports quoted Obi’s spokesperson, Valentine Obienyem, as confirming the planned defection of his boss to the ADC.
“Yes, it is true,” he reportedly said on Sunday.
Senator Umeh said the event would hold in Enugu, adding that it would involve all Obi’s supporters across the South East region.
“They will come from Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi and Imo states to join those in Enugu, where this exercise will hold on 31st December,” he reportedly added.
Sources hinted that Obi, who has not hidden his intention to appear on the ballot in 2027, would contest the presidential ticket of the ADC.
On his part, Chief Chekwas Okorie, reportedly said that the expected formal defection of Obi to the ADC is a healthy development that could reshape the thinking and permutations of the 2027 general elections.
“I imagine that he would be defecting along with most of his associates and followers. I believe that a fortified and strong ADC will add value to the opposition and assuage the general fear of a possible one-party option to Nigerians come 2027. The APC, ADC and possibly the PDP locking horns in the 2027 democratic encounter promises a vibrant and robust electioneering campaign that will provide Nigerians the required options to make informed choices in electing their preferred leaders at all levels. I imagine that the APC leadership will return to the drawing table to map out the strategy to confront the emerging challenge. Nigerians are in interesting times,” Okorie stated.
National President of Njiko Igbo Forum (NIF), Rev Okechukwu Obioha, vouched support for Obi to ensure he reaches the pinnacle of his political career. He, however, cautioned that the ADC should not compromise merit and integrity in the choice of its presidential candidate, stressing that Obi remains the “hope for the restoration of the country on the path of greatness.”
