{
  "id": 16085109,
  "title": "APC slams Atiku over Ebola comments, defends Tinubu",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/22/apc-slams-atiku-over-ebola-comments-defends-tinubu-16085109",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-22T18:40:52.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Punch Nigeria",
    "slug": "punch-nigeria",
    "url": "https://punchng.com/apc-slams-atiku-over-ebola-comments-defends-tinubu/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The All Progressives Congress (APC) has strongly rebuked former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for politicising the Ebola health emergency and disrespecting President Bola Tinubu. In a press statement, the APC Presidential Campaign Council accused Atiku of turning a serious health concern into a vehicle for ridicule by linking President Tinubu's first name to Ebola. The statement emphasized that linking the President's name to Ebola risks trivializing a public health issue and disrespecting the President.\n\nAtiku's comments on the government's handling of the Ebola situation were deemed inappropriate by the APC, as Nigerians needed to support health authorities during the crisis. The council criticized the headline attributed to Atiku, which linked President Tinubu's name to Ebola, as it risks turning the serious health concern into a tool for mockery. The council also faulted Atiku's remarks on the detection of an infected Nigerian who had travelled from Uganda, arguing that an infected person cannot spread Ebola until they actively develop symptoms, typically appearing eight to 10 days after exposure.\n\nThe APC campaign council defended President Tinubu and expressed disappointment that the N10 billion emergency allocation approved for the Ebola emergency in June remained untouched. The council praised the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), and other surveillance agencies for their efforts in detecting the infected individual and facilitating contact tracing. It emphasized that the response of health authorities deserved recognition rather than political criticism.\n\nThe council rejected allegations attributed to Atiku that a ministerial briefing aimed to discourage Nigerians from attending campaign rallies or voting. It described the allegation as speculative and urged Atiku to provide verifiable evidence to support such claims. The council emphasized that Vice President Atiku and other opposition figures should avoid politicising public health concerns and emphasized the need for cooperation among political leaders, health professionals, and the public to prevent a wider outbreak.",
  "summary": "The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has criticized former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for his comments regarding the Ebola health emergency. In a press statement issued Thursday and signed by spokesperson Dele Alake, the council accused Atiku of politicizing a public health issue and disrespecting President Bola Tinubu.\n\nAccording to Punch, the council took issue with a headline attributed to Atiku that linked the President's first name to Ebola while questioning the N10 billion approved for the emergency. The APC stated that rhyming the President's name with Ebola risks turning a serious health concern into a way to ridicule him.\n\nThe council also challenged Atiku's remarks concerning the detection of an infected Nigerian traveler from Uganda. The statement argued that Atiku's comments lacked an understanding of the disease, noting that Ebola has an incubation period of two to 21 days and that an infected person cannot transmit the virus until they actively develop symptoms.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}