Atiku flays Tinubu over Almajiri Commission budget, PFIPC scandal

Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has accused President Bola Tinubu of either being complicit in or unaware of alleged irregularities in the implementation of the 2026 budget, following revelations that billions of naira appropriated to the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education were earmarked for road construction projects.

In a statement issued on Tuesday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the budget controversy, alongside the ongoing Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) scandal, reflected a pattern of fiscal recklessness and abuse of public funds under the Tinubu administration.

The former vice president questioned why an agency established to address the educational needs of Almajiri and out-of-school children was allocated funds for projects outside its statutory mandate.

“The question that naturally arises is this: Since when did the National Commission for Almajiri and Out-of-School Children Education become a road construction agency?” he asked.

Atiku described the development as a “cruel betrayal” of millions of out-of-school children, alleging that the government had adopted a strategy of concealing questionable projects in agencies unlikely to attract public scrutiny.

“This is the height of irresponsibility. It is the height of impunity. Indeed, it is the height of evil,” he said.

He also linked the controversy to allegations surrounding the PFIPC, where Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, who presented himself as the council’s Director-General, accused senior government officials of demanding billions of naira in connection with the proposed agency.

According to Atiku, the Presidency’s attempt to distance the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, from the controversy had raised more questions than answers.

He queried why Adeyemi had not been prosecuted if he was indeed an impostor, despite being invited for questioning by security agencies months earlier.

“If Prince Adeyemi is indeed the fraudster that government spokespersons now portray him to be, why has he not been arraigned before a competent court of law since he was first invited for questioning late last year?” Atiku asked.

The ADC presidential candidate argued that President Tinubu could not dissociate himself from either controversy.

“The budget is his budget. The Appropriation Act bears his signature. The agencies involved operate under his administration.
If billions of naira can be hidden under agencies with no legal mandate to execute such projects, then either the President approved these distortions or he was completely unaware of what was happening under his watch,” he said.

He called for a full, transparent and independent investigation into both the budget allegations and the PFIPC controversy.

The Presidency has, however, distanced itself from the PFIPC, describing it as a fictitious organisation.