Atiku Abubakar Denies $500,000 Bribe Allegation in 2023

Atiku Abubakar, the former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, responded to allegations that he accepted a $500,000 bribe in 2023 through his former wife, Jennifer Douglas, concerning the Mambilla Power Project. His spokesperson, Phrank Shaibu, accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of trying to fabricate a tribunal verdict to implicate Atiku.

This controversy arose after Nigeria's victory against Sunrise Power at the International Chamber of Commerce regarding the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project in Taraba State. The APC's Presidential Council, led by Minister of Solid Minerals Development Dele Alake, called for Atiku to withdraw from the 2027 presidential race.

Atiku rejected the APC's interpretation of the tribunal's ruling, asserting that they misrepresented the findings to suggest wrongdoing on his part. He emphasized that the tribunal did not establish any link between him and the alleged bribe, labeling the APC's claims as politically motivated fabrications.