Tinubu using Police escort withdrawal to target Atiku Abubakar – Dele Momodu
The publisher of Ovation magazine, Dele Momodu, has leveled a serious accusation against President Bola Tinubu, claiming the recent directive withdrawing police escorts from certain VIPs is a political tool specifically aimed at targeting former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
In a statement posted on Tuesday, December 2, via his verified X account, Momodu said he “immediately smelled a rat” when the escort withdrawal policy was announced, suggesting that a “dummy list” was first circulated by presidential aides to gauge public reaction.
According to Momodu, “Tinubu’s spin doctors released a dummy list of those affected by the sudden and thoughtless decision, in order to test the waters.” This list, he claimed, deliberately included unlikely names such as Nyesom Wike and Aisha Buhari alongside former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
Momodu asserted that it quickly became clear to him that Atiku, who constitutionally retains security protection as a former Vice President, was one of the administration’s “main targets.”
He claimed his prediction that the list would be disowned as fake within 24 hours came true, basing his position on his “deep knowledge of Tinubu’s antics, mindset and modus operandi.”
Momodu further contended that if the administration’s intention were genuine, they should have used the moment to create a model where wealthy Nigerians could fund expanded police recruitment, emphasizing that “No nation can afford to voluntarily expose its private and productive sectors to bandits and kidnappers.”
The media entrepreneur strongly condemned the withdrawal, warning that the move is “dangerous,” “gravely unprecedented,” and “preposterously myopic.”
He argued that the decision could endanger prominent Nigerians and escalate insecurity, noting that many VIPs legitimately require protection given the climate of increasing criminal activity.
“He is deliberately setting up the poor against the accomplished Nigerians who deserve maximum security,” Momodu said.
Momodu further alleged that President Tinubu was utilizing state power to suppress opposition voices ahead of future political contests. He concluded that the country was being led “to Golgotha,” insisting the police escort policy was yet another example of the president “playing politics with everything.”
