Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has raised concerns over the leak of his private bank details and what he described as a suspicious credit into one of his private bank accounts.
Atiku’s media aide, Phrank Shaibu, disclosed this in a statement issued on Friday, August 7, 2026, saying the transaction originated from an individual unknown to the former vice president.
According to the statement, the payment was made with the narration, “Contribution Electioneering Campaign,” despite the fact that neither Atiku nor his campaign organisation solicited or authorised the transaction.
“The transfer originated from a person totally unknown to His Excellency with the narration ‘Contribution Electioneering Campaign.’ Neither His Excellency nor his campaign solicited, authorised or has any knowledge of the individual or entity behind the unauthorized payment,” the statement said.
Shaibu said the circumstances surrounding the transaction were “deeply troubling,” particularly because the account was a strictly private account whose details were not publicly available.
He questioned how an unknown individual or entity was able to obtain Atiku’s confidential banking information and use it to make the payment.
“The account is a strictly private one whose details are not in the public domain. This raises a fundamental question: How did unknown persons obtain the confidential banking details of a private citizen?” he asked.
The former vice president’s aide warned that the incident raised broader concerns about the security of Nigerians’ financial information, particularly if private banking details could allegedly be accessed without authorisation.
“If the private banking information of a former Vice President and a leading presidential candidate can be accessed and deployed for reasons yet unknown then no Nigerian’s financial privacy is safe,” he said.
Shaibu further expressed concern over the possibility that the information may have been obtained by individuals with privileged access to confidential banking records.
“Even more disturbing is the suspicion that such confidential information may have been obtained through persons with privileged access,” the statement said.
He warned that, if established, such an alleged breach could expose the account holder to serious security risks.
“If established, this would amount to a grave abuse of power capable of exposing the account holder to kidnappers, terrorists, bandits, fraudsters and other criminal elements,” Shaibu stated.
The Atiku camp subsequently called the attention of the public and security agencies to the incident, describing it as part of what it termed “a litany of suspicious activities” ahead of next year’s general elections.
“We therefore put the Nigerian public – and the security agencies – on notice about this latest incident in a litany of suspicious activities leading up to next year’s general elections,” the statement added.
The former vice president’s camp also accused unnamed actors of attempting to distract the public and damage Atiku’s reputation as political activities intensify.
“As political activities gather momentum, Nigerians should not be distracted by these tired tactics that smack of character assassination,” Shaibu said.
He added that such alleged tactics had failed in the past and would not deter Atiku from pursuing his political ambitions.
“Such desperate antics have failed before and will fail again. The Waziri Adamawa remains focused on offering Nigerians credible leadership and practical solutions to the nation’s challenges,” he said.
