By Akinwale Kasali

In what could be described as an outburst and reaction from All Progressives Congress, APC, Presidential Candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to statements made by Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar during an interview with ARISE Television on Friday, 22nd July, 2022, where he said he rejected Tinubu’s request to be his running mate in 2007 under the now defunct Action Congress, so as to avoid a Muslim-Muslim has been debunked by the APC National Leader.

Tinubu in a statement on Saturday, July 23rd 2022, through his Media Aide, Tunde Rahman, labeled the former Vice President of Nigeria as a pathological liar.

The Two Term former Lagos State Governor said the claim was not true, adding that it was Abubakar who offered him the vice-presidential ticket.

Tinubu in the statement said he is saddened to see that Atiku has become unhinged from the truth, and his obsession in his quest for office has made him (Atiku) willing to render any form of untruth he thinks might gain him a single vote.

“Atiku may want to be president. However, all he has shown is that he is pathological.

“Whatever moral compass he had has been lost. During a 22 July television interview, Atiku assaulted historic truth by lying that he did not name Tinubu as his running mate in 2007 on the Action Congress ticket because Atiku did not want a Muslim as his running mate.

“It was the actual founders of the AC who offered the party’s flag to Atiku because of the need to fight the authoritarian designs then President Obasanjo and the PDP had on Nigeria’s democracy.

“At that moment, Atiku had been unceremoniously pushed aside, if not out of the PDP by Obasanjo. We needed to rally all forces to confront the one-party state Obasanjo had in mind. Atiku was simply a beneficiary of this collective duty to fight the attack on multi-party democracy the PDP had launched.

“I feel sorry for dear old Atiku. Love of his own ambition has eclipsed his relationship with the truth and an honest account of the past. We formed the AC without his knowledge. When President Obasanjo virtually exiled him from the PDP, we lent him our support by giving him the AC platform for the 2007 election.

“Let me say openly that Atiku offered me the vice presidential ticket in 2007. Let me also say that my religion has not changed. When he offered the position to me, I was a Muslim and I believe he was aware of my religious faith at the time.

“Atiku’s calculations and deceit had nothing to do with religion or his sensitivity to it. His conduct has everything to do with what we discovered about his paucity of character and love of intrigue.”

It would be recalled that Tinubu formed Action Congress, AC, in 2006 after leaving Alliance for Democracy, AD, that gave him the platform to become Governor in 1999.

He however gave Atiku the leverage to contest for Presidency under the AC after leaving the PDP due to his differences with former President Olusegun Obasanjo who was against Atiku succeeding him, rather, the PDP Presidential ticket was given to the Late President Umaru Yar’Adua.

Atiku chose a relatively unknown Ben Obi as his running mate in 2007.