FG, Atiku in war-of-words over Buhari’s trekking

…Atiku: Walk isn’t work, not unique attribute of fitness
…Ex-VP frustrated over past failures to win presidential poll, APC spokesman
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) are now engaged in war-of-words following Atiku’s criticism of President Muhammadu Buhari walking from the venue of Sallah prayers in Daura, Katsina State on Tuesday to his home as proof of his fitness to re-contest for the presidency in 2019.

But the APC spokesman, Yekini Nabena, has faulted the claims of Atiku, saying that the former Vice President is frustrated over his past failures to win presidential election

Buhari had on Tuesday shunned protocol and decided to demonstrate his fitness to run for a second term by trekking 800 metres from the Eid-praying ground in Daura to his private residence.

He also acknowledged cheers from residents, who lined up on his route to catch a glimpse of him.

Speaking on the matter, the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Mallam Garba Shehu, said the action of the president was a positive response to an earlier suggestion by Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal that Buhari was too old to re-contest.

Shehu had said: “I think the president has done one thing today – that the issue is not how old one is but how fit he is; how healthy he is. Now the president has proven his fitness and well-being to continue in office is a settled matter.

“I think that if people want to campaign against him, they should do so on issues that are of significance to Nigerians. The President is fit, he is healthy; he is good to go for second term.”

The Daily Times recalls that Tambuwal, who is interested in the president’s office, had said last week that Buhari is “too old” to continue to rule the country beyond 2019.

According to Tambuwal, who spoke during a solidarity visit of students and youths in Sokoto, last week, the President is just too old to be Nigeria’s leader, despite his integrity and impeccable character.

But Atiku in a tweet on Wednesday described the President’s action as pedestrian, noting that walking is not a unique attribute to anyone and should not be used as a measure of fitness.

Atiku tweeted thus: “I regularly jog more than a mile & exercise, but it will be pedestrian of me to ask Nigerians to vote for me because of that.

I want my party – the PDP, and Nigerians, to vote for me because I WORK not because I WALK. I will work to create jobs. I won’t walk to create an illusion.”

Atiku, who is a presidential aspirant of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), also attached a photo himself exercising on a treadmill to the tweet to prove his fitness for the prestigious post.

When contacted last night, the APC Acting National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Yekini Nabena, told The Daily Times that Atiku’s comment should be ignored on the grounds that he is yet to emerge as the presidential candidate of the PDP.

He said: “Ordinarily, we would not have dignified Atiku with a response because he is an aspirant and yet to emerge as presidential aspirant of the PDP.

“But when you consider the fact that the former Vice President is a serial defector and loser in presidential elections, it becomes apparent that the man is frustrated and will never see anything good in President Buhari.

“He should know by now that no amount of his attacks will affect the President’s conscientious efforts to change the country for better. We know that Atiku is on his usual wide goose chase as regards the presidency and we wish him luck in his ongoing efforts.

“But we wish to advice him to leave the President alone and concentrate on how he is going to defeat other frontline aspirants in order to clinch the PDP presidential nomination. It is after this development that we will take up issues with him.”