{"id":130235,"date":"2026-10-22T22:28:07","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T21:28:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pointblanknews.com\/pbn\/?p=130235"},"modified":"2026-10-22T22:28:07","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T21:28:07","slug":"apc-slams-atiku-over-ebola-response-defends-tinubu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pointblanknews.com\/pbn\/exclusive\/apc-slams-atiku-over-ebola-response-defends-tinubu\/","title":{"rendered":"APC Slams Atiku Over Ebola Response, Defends Tinubu"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>By Lizzy Chirkpi<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has accused former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar of politicising Nigeria\u2019s Ebola response, insisting that the \u20a610 billion approved by President Bola Tinubu for emergency preparedness in June remains unspent.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The council\u2019s reaction followed Atiku\u2019s demand for a detailed account of the funds, alongside concerns about disease surveillance, the protection of frontline health workers and the Federal Government\u2019s handling of Nigeria\u2019s confirmed Ebola case in Abuja.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a statement issued on Thursday, October 22, 2026, the council\u2019s spokesperson, Dele Alake, faulted Atiku for using the public health emergency to criticise Tinubu\u2019s administration.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Alake said the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and other relevant agencies had continued surveillance and response activities using existing resources.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cOn accountability, the Atiku camp should note that the N10 billion the President approved for the Ebola emergency in June remains untouched, as the NCDC, FAAN, and other agencies involved in surveillance have been spending other available resources,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The council also criticised what it described as attempts to turn the outbreak into a political weapon against the President.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cWe believe linking and rhyming President Bola Tinubu\u2019s name to Ebola only risks turning a serious health concern into a vehicle to ridicule the President of the Federal Republic,\u201d Alake said.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Atiku had, in a statement issued on Wednesday through his Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, demanded transparency over the emergency funds announced in June.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">He asked the Federal Government to disclose the amount disbursed, dates of payment, contracts awarded, beneficiaries and items delivered under the preparedness programme.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cWhere is the money? Publish the amount actually disbursed, the dates of payment, every contract awarded, every recipient and every item delivered. A press statement cannot replace an audit,\u201d Atiku said.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The former vice-president also questioned the effectiveness of Nigeria\u2019s disease surveillance system, raising concerns about the interval between the infected traveller\u2019s arrival in the country, the onset of symptoms, treatment at a private hospital and the eventual public confirmation of the infection.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">He further alleged that frontline health workers had been left to manage the situation without adequate protective equipment, calling for medical professionals to take the lead in coordinating the response.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Defending the government, Alake cited Ebola\u2019s incubation period of between two and 21 days, arguing that symptom-based screening alone could not always detect infected persons immediately.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">He also said the country\u2019s surveillance network had helped alert authorities to the infection and facilitated the identification of 44 contacts for tracing.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The APC council maintained that the agencies involved deserved support for their efforts rather than what it described as politically motivated attacks.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">It also rejected suggestions that public health announcements were intended to discourage political campaigns or prevent Nigerians from participating in the 2027 elections.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Alake challenged Atiku\u2019s camp to provide verifiable evidence to support its allegations and urged opposition figures to refrain from politicising the health emergency.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">The controversy follows Tinubu\u2019s June 9 directive for the immediate release of \u20a610 billion to strengthen Nigeria\u2019s preparedness against Ebola and other emerging public health threats.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">While the APC council insists that the approved funds remain unspent because the relevant agencies have been relying on other resources, Atiku is demanding a transparent account of the allocation and the measures taken to prepare the country for the outbreak.<\/p>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Related Posts generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Lizzy Chirkpi The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has accused former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar of politicising Nigeria\u2019s Ebola response, insisting that the \u20a610 billion approved by President&hellip;<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on wp_trim_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on wp_trim_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Related Posts generic via filter on wp_trim_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":129529,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-130235","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - 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