LAGOS - Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in his New Year message charged Nigerians to remain steadfast in the face of hardships, urging them not to allow religion or ethnicity to divide them.
Atiku in a New Year message on Thursday, said, "I urge Nigerians to remain steadfast in the face of these hardships. This is one of the most painful New Year messages I've ever written, fully aware of the despair confronting millions due to the callous and soulless policies of the Tinubu-led APC government.
"Citizens are repeatedly told to 'make sacrifices'. Sacrifice is patriotic -- but it becomes cruel when demanded by leaders who live extravagantly, insulated from the suffering of the people. Leadership without shared pain is not leadership; it's exploitation.
"Small businesses -- the backbone of job creation -- are collapsing. Workers are losing jobs. Yet those in power prioritise comfort over conscience. This contradicts every principle of democratic governance."
Speaking on the attitude of the leaders, he said, "The arrogance of this administration is unprecedented. Its contempt for public opinion, its hostility to criticism, and its willingness to punish Nigerians through bad policies reveal a government fundamentally hostile to the people.
"Never in our recent history have we seen an administration so openly dismissive of public sentiment, so casual in breaking laws, and so reckless with democratic norms.
"A government capable of forging or tampering with laws cannot be trusted to conduct free and fair elections in 2027.
"Still, we mustn't surrender to despair. These hardships must become the fuel for national awakening. Democracy gives the people the power to change a failing government -- peacefully and decisively -- through the ballot."
On the need for unity, he said, "Don't allow religion or ethnicity to divide you. Division only serves those who benefit from your suffering. Unity is the path to rescue.
"The so-called anti-corruption crusade of this government is a façade -- selective, vindictive, and politically motivated. It has become a tool for persecuting opposition figures rather than cleansing the system.
"Fighting corruption is essential, but when agencies like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) are weaponised against opponents while allies enjoy immunity, justice is mocked. Institutions must act without fear or favour.
"For millions of long-suffering Nigerians, the only consolation is that 2025 -- one of the most punishing years in our recent history -- has come to an end. It was a year defined by economic suffocation, political recklessness, and governance without empathy under the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration."
On Tinubu's reforms, he said, "The past year exposed, in stark terms, the incompetence and policy bankruptcy of President Bola Tinubu. Governing for months without a functional budget, the administration relied on propaganda while borrowing recklessly, pushing the nation to the brink of economic collapse.
"Nothing better captures the decay of this government than the scandal of a forged tax law, shamelessly branded a "reform." Even more disturbing was the president's refusal to allow due legislative and legal processes to address what is clearly a criminal act.
"A government that begins reform with forgery cannot end with prosperity. In the same year, Nigeria's democratic foundations were deliberately weakened, as the APC worked systematically to deform our multiparty democracy into a de facto one-party state through coercion, intimidation, and state capture.
"While drowning the nation in debt, the government falsely claimed to have met revenue targets.
"Meanwhile, insecurity worsened dramatically. Kidnappings, abductions, and violent crimes surged, affecting citizens young and old alike.
"Lives were lost, livelihoods destroyed, and communities terrorised, while government assurances rang hollow.
"The administration spoke endlessly of economic recovery, yet unemployment, underemployment, labour unrest, and collapsing small businesses defined the year. Industries shut down. Workers were sent home. Hunger spread. Suffering became normalized.
"Despite these failures -- compounded by the appointment of undistinguished and unfit individuals to represent Nigeria abroad -- the country survived, not because of government competence, but because of the resilience of its people.
"I therefore call on all patriotic Nigerians to engage, mobilise, persuade, and organise. Prepare to vote, and to defend your votes in 2027.
"Let's vote out hunger, insecurity, unemployment, dishonesty, corruption, abductions, lies, and propaganda.
"Nigeria deserves better. Nigerians deserve dignity.
"2026 is the year to till the soil. 2027 is the year of harvest. It's too late to turn back. Let us rise, organise, and reclaim our country."