Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has expressed surprise that a call happened between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and President-elect, Bola Tinubu.
Recall that Blinken had during a call with Tinubu on Wednesday assured the Nigerian President-elect of the U.S. commitment to further strengthening the U.S.-Nigeria relationship with the incoming administration.
The Secretary noted that the U.S.-Nigeria partnership was built on shared interests and strong people-to-people ties and that those links should continue to strengthen under President-elect Tinubu’s tenure.
But Atiku in a tweet on Wednesday expressed disbelief, saying the call was a contradiction to the publicly stated position of the US on Nigeria’s 2023 presidential election.
According to him, acknowledging the 2023 presidential election result can be demoralising to citizens.
“I am in disbelief that @SecBlinken called Tinubu, a contradiction to the publicly stated position of the US on Nigeria’s 2023 presidential election. This is inconceivable considering that America, as the bastion of democracy, is well briefed on the sham election of February 25.
“To give legitimacy to the widely acknowledged fraudulent election in Nigeria can be demoralising to citizens who have hedged their bet on democracy and the sanctity of the ballot @StateDept @POTUS @USinNigeria.”