Former Vice President and Presidential Aspirant, Atiku Abubakar has deleted a post on his Twitter handle over the killing of a Christian girl, Deborah Yakubu in Sokoto after his tweet generated outrage from Muslim Northerners who asked him to forget his 2023 presidential ambition.
The comment tweeted around 12:20 a.m. on Thursday, generated thousands of reaction and was deleted later.
Most of the comments were from fundamentalists who warned the politician to stay away from condemning the murder of the Christian student.
The tweet had read: “There can not be a justification for such gruesome murder. Deborah Yakubu was murdered, and all those behind her death must be brought to justice. My condolences to her family and friends.”
Deborah was lynched at Shehu Shagari College of Education on Thursday morning for allegedly posting comments that blasphemed Prophet Mohammed. The violence has elicited widespread uproar and condemnation, with Catholic priest Matthew Kukah and Sultan of Sokoto calling on authorities to immediately bring the killers to book.
Atiku Abubakar, who is from northern Adamawa state, had received support across the country, especially amongst southern Christians who see him as a moderate statesman.
Some reactions on Twitter:
MrMacaroni @mrmacaronii: “Atiku deleting the tweet condemning the gruesome murder of Deborah shows what we have been preaching this whole election season. Politicians don’t care for the people. They only play to the gallery when seeking for our votes. The people must see beyond these gimmicks”.
Joseph Temitope @JosephT66544151: “He was never fit to be president in the first place, so how can such person will end insecurity knowing that the insecurity especially Boko haram is been sponsored by some people he knows very well”.
Wilfred Iyke N. @wilfrik: “Someone that left for dubai immediately after his loss in 2019 only to resurface in 2022 for another election cycle is certainly not in interested in the welfare of Nigerians. He merely wants to grab power for the perks of it”.
NEFERTITI @firstladyship: “Atiku is in serious dilemma. Tweeting that condemnation alienated him from his Northern bloc. Deleting it equally alienated him from his Southern bloc. For me, silence is not the answer. He shouldn’t have deleted that tweet, just like Peter Obi condemns killings in his SE”.
‘Fisayo Soyombo @fisayosoyombo: “Atiku deleting that post condemning Deborah’s murder is yet another proof politicians rarely mean what they say; they only say what they think the people want to hear. They’ve mastered the art of gallery play & will back down at the slightest threat to their political ambitions”.
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