It’s not about lobbyist, documents, records are main issues – Atiku tells Presidency

Atiku Abubakar's team has defended the President's criticism of a U.S. lobbyist connected to the former vice president, arguing that the government is diverting attention from the crucial documents and records. Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication to Atiku, Phrank Shaibu, stated that the Presidency should prioritize examining records in the United States rather than scrutinizing the background of lobbyist Karl Von Batten.

This response followed President Bola Tinubu's Special Adviser on Media and Public Communications, Sunday Dare, questioning Atiku's relationship with Von Batten. Shaibu insisted that the dispute was not centered around Von Batten and urged attention to be directed at documents available in the U.S., including a civil forfeiture case involving $460,000 in an account bearing Tinubu's name.

He emphasized that the forfeiture case should not be perceived as a criminal conviction, but rather that the lack of a criminal conviction does not negate the court records. "The documents are there," Shaibu said. The Atiku team also clarified that Atiku's reported $1.2 million lobbying deal with Von Batten-Montague-York was registered with the U.S. Department of Justice under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), making the details of the arrangement and payments publicly available.

Shaibu questioned the Federal Government's own lobbying expenses in Washington, noting that the Tinubu administration hired DCI Group for $750,000 per month, totaling $4.5 million over six months and potentially reaching $9 million given provisions in the agreement. He questioned why Atiku's $1.2 million for a full year was seen as desperate but defended the administration's arrangement of up to $9 million.

Shaibu accused the Presidency of using Von Batten's personal background as a distraction from the issues raised by the documents. He argued that the debate should not focus on the lobbyist's marriage, ancestry, name, or business history but on the records themselves. Shaibu also called on the Tinubu administration to address the issues affecting Nigerians, such as rising food, transportation, and electricity costs, declining purchasing power, and insecurity, before criticizing the opposition for similar engagements.