Dare Babalola
Phrank Shaibu, an aide to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has hit back at the All Progressives Congress (APC), asserting that the former presidential candidate is healthier than President Bola Tinubu.
The response comes amid intensifying political exchanges and questions over the health statuses and age of both leaders ahead of the 2027 elections.
Shaibu who is the Senior Special Assistant for Public Communication to Atiku, stated this in reaction to APC spokesman in Lagos Seye Oladejo’s comments criticising Atiku’s party switch to the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Shaibu emphasised Atiku’s transparent health record contrasted with speculation about Tinubu’s age and visible frailty.
“The APC can’t enable identity fraud by backing a leader with name, age, origin discrepancies yet attack Atiku for strategic party moves. If Atiku, a far healthier, mentally sharper, and globally respected statesman, is ‘too old’ to aspire at 79, then what do we call a visibly frail leader whose true age remains one of the country’s best-kept mysteries?” Shaibu asked in a statement he signed on Thursday.
Shaibu noted that the APC has no moral grounds to mock the former vice president over his age or health status, which was described as satisfactory.
He continued, “As usual, the Lagos APC displayed its trademark hypocrisy, selective amnesia, and intellectual laziness.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Atiku Abubakar’s political journey is public, transparent, and fully documented. His age is known, his parents are known, his educational records are intact, and his public life can be traced from childhood to national prominence without the need for forensic experts, private investigators, or sworn affidavits to reconcile conflicting identities.
“This already places him miles ahead of their paymaster who — by all reasonable public evidence — is well past 90, yet insists on clinging to power and is already scheming for a second term.”
