The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has criticised President Bola Tinubu for likening Nigeria’s economic situation to that of a cancer patient.
Atiku spoke on Thursday during a world press conference in Abuja, hours after Tinubu used the analogy in his nationwide broadcast to mark Nigeria’s 66th Independence anniversary.
In his address, Tinubu said Nigeria was like a sick patient who had been diagnosed with cancer when his administration assumed office in 2023. He argued that the economic reforms introduced by his government represented difficult but necessary treatment for the country’s underlying problems.
Atiku, however, questioned the outcome of the reforms, asking why Nigerians were still facing difficulties with food, healthcare and transportation after three years of the Tinubu administration.
“Bola, you called Nigeria a patient with cancer. After three years of your treatment, why is it harder for Nigerians to buy food, pay for medicine, or even get to work?” Atiku asked.
He also questioned the contrast between the government’s revenue position and the purchasing power of Nigerians.
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“Why does your government have more money while the people can afford less?” he asked.
Atiku further argued that Nigerians who experience hardship should be able to question the government’s policies without being dismissed as opposed to reform.
“You said Nigerians must endure the pain because you are curing the disease, but when a patient cries out, a doctor listens,” he said.
He added that an increase in government revenue should not, by itself, be treated as evidence that living conditions had improved.
“A patient who cannot afford to live is not proof that the treatment is working,” Atiku said.
Tinubu, in his Independence Day address, defended his administration’s economic policies, saying the reforms were intended to address structural problems that had accumulated before he took office.
The President said the reforms had produced improvements in economic indicators, including economic growth, lower inflation from its peak and rebuilt foreign reserves. He also said Nigeria recorded more than $6 billion in non-oil export revenue in 2025.
Atiku also challenged Tinubu over his reference to the condition of Nigeria in 2023, pointing to the fact that the All Progressives Congress (APC), which Tinubu leads, had governed the country for eight years before his administration.
“Your party had governed Nigeria for eight years, if not more. If the country was as sick as you say, tell Nigeria to come to the places where Nigerians make their daily choices,” he said.
