Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticised the Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led Federal Government over its handling of the OPL 245 dispute, describing claims of a “final resolution” as misleading.
In a statement issued on Sunday and signed by his media aide, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said a fresh legal action by Malabu Oil and Gas Limited indicates that the matter remains unresolved, contrary to earlier assurances by government officials.
He pointed to a pre-action notice filed by Malabu through its counsel, R.O. Atabo (SAN), which, according to him, challenges the position of the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi, that the dispute had been conclusively settled.
According to the statement, cases relating to the oil block are still pending before the Supreme Court and the Federal High Court, underscoring that the dispute remains active.
He argued that excluding a major stakeholder while litigation is ongoing raises serious issues about transparency and due process.
The former vice president further described the situation as part of what he termed a broader pattern under the Tinubu administration, which he accused of prioritising optics over substance.
On the broader state of the nation, Atiku said Nigerians continue to face worsening economic conditions and insecurity despite government claims of reforms, citing rising debt levels and persistent security challenges as indicators of deeper governance concerns.
“Contrary to official pronouncements, it is now clear that the matter is far from resolved and remains the subject of multiple subsisting legal proceedings, including cases before the Supreme Court and the Federal High Court.
“Even more troubling is the revelation that Malabu — a principal stakeholder with longstanding legal and equitable interests in OPL 245 — was neither consulted nor involved in any purported negotiation or settlement process. This raises fundamental questions about the legality, transparency, and integrity of the so-called ‘Resolution Agreement’ reportedly executed at the Presidential Villa.
“A government that sidelines critical stakeholders, disregards pending judicial processes, and proceeds to celebrate a disputed agreement demonstrates not strength, but recklessness.
“This development is not an isolated incident. It fits into a broader and disturbing pattern that has come to define the Tinubu administration — a pattern of governance driven more by propaganda than by substance, more by optics than by legality, and more by expediency than by national interest,” the statement read.
