Presidency, Atiku in fresh war of words over killings

The Presidency and Atiku Abubakar are engaged in a public dispute over reported killings in Nigeria. According to reports, 5,091 Nigerians were killed in violent incidents across the country within three months. Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, described the figures as a "damning scorecard" on the government's performance, stating that the numbers reflect a failure to protect lives and property.

Atiku's statement, as reported by Daily Trust, attributed the worsening insecurity to the government's fiscal indiscipline, wasteful expenditure, and poor budget implementation. He claimed that the figures represent a human cost of the government's actions, with each number representing a Nigerian whose life was cut short, a family in mourning, and children deprived of parents.

The Presidency has responded by blaming Atiku, although details of their response are not provided in the reports. The exchange marks a fresh escalation in the war of words between the two sides over the issue of killings in Nigeria.

Brief written by urgent.news from Punch, Punch Nigeria, Daily Trust — 3 reports on this story. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.