Former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has accused the federal government of deliberately using poverty as a tool to suppress the Nigerian population.
Speaking on Saturday, May 31, at the 60th birthday lecture of former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi in Abuja, themed *”Weaponising Poverty in Nigeria,”* Atiku alleged that the current administration is exploiting economic hardship as a means of political control.
“What we are experiencing in Nigeria today is a clear case of state-sponsored weaponisation of poverty,” he said.
Reflecting on his early years in Kano—once considered one of Nigeria’s most prosperous cities—Atiku lamented the current state of decline, where many now live on the streets or sleep under bridges due to worsening poverty and insecurity.
He also expressed concern over reports that a government agency in Kano, responsible for rehabilitating the homeless, was ordered to halt its activities after attempting to remove vulnerable people from the streets.
“They were summoned to a meeting and told to stop the operation,” Atiku said, describing it as part of a broader strategy to control the population through deprivation and hardship.
