Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has alleged that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar provided financial support for an attempt to remove him from office during his first term in power. Obasanjo made the claim while responding to comments by former Ogun State Governor Olusegun Osoba on political events surrounding the 2003 general elections.
According to Obasanjo, the late Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ghali Na’Abba, began moves to initiate impeachment proceedings after meeting with Atiku at the Presidential Villa. He claimed the meeting took place on a Friday while he was away from the office and that the discussion centred on ending his presidency after one term.
The former president further alleged that Atiku provided Na’Abba with N5 million to begin the impeachment process. He said the development was monitored by his Chief of Staff, whom he described as a trained intelligence officer, and that details of the meeting and the alleged financial transaction were documented and later brought to his attention.
Obasanjo maintained that he was aware of the activities surrounding the alleged impeachment plan but did not feel threatened because he believed there were no constitutional grounds to remove him from office. He said he remained confident that the process would not succeed since it lacked the legal basis required for the impeachment of a sitting president.
The allegation is the latest in the long-running political disagreements between Obasanjo and Atiku, whose relationship has remained strained since they served together in office between 1999 and 2007. At the time of this report, Atiku had not publicly responded to the former president’s claims.