Atiku’s aide taunts Presidency after Army admits killing protester

Paul Ibe, media aide to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has berated the presidency over its reaction to Atiku’s statement on use of lethal force against peaceful civilian protesters by security agencies.

Ibe said the recent admission by the military to “mistakenly” killing a 16-year-old boy in Zaria, Kaduna State, was exactly what his principal had alluded to in his statement.

Speaking against the backdrop of the ongoing #EndBadGovernance protest across the country and efforts by security agencies to stop the protest especially in areas where the situation has turned violent, Atiku said the Service Chiefs could be held accountable even after leaving office.

However, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga, in a statement late Tuesday, criticised the former Vice President over his warning to security agencies.

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Onanuga asked Atiku to act like opposition figures in the United Kingdom “who have rallied behind the government to condemn the ongoing riots in the UK”.

He blamed Atiku for not condemning the looting and destruction that trailed the nationwide protests in Nigeria in the last week.

Weighing in on the situation, Ibe, in a tweet on Wednesday told Onanuga that Tinubu, as Commander-in-Chief, knows that even in war there are rules of engagement.

“Following @atiku’s stern warning to service chiefs and military commanders not to shoot at protesting Nigerian citizens else they face crimes against humanity, the @HQNigerianArmy has admitted to “mistakenly” killing a 16-year-old boy in Zaria, Kaduna State.

“The culprit soldier, we are told, has been arrested. That’s accountability.

“This was exactly what the former Vice President had alluded to, that even those who give the orders for such extrajudicial executions will be held accountable under international laws.

“As Commander-in-Chief, @officialABAT knows that even in war, there are rules of engagement. So, @aonanuga1956, there was really no need for you to have been foaming in the mouth,” he wrote.