Call your family to order - Atiku tells Tinubu amid NANS crisis involving Seyi

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has advised President Bola Tinubu to get a grip on his family amid allegations against his son, Seyi Tinubu, to influence the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS).

Atiku, who flew the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) banner in the 2023 presidential election, issued the caution in a statement issued by his media adviser, Paul Ibe, on Friday, April 2, 2025.

This followed a recent claim by a factional president of NANS, Comrade Atiku Isah, that Tinubu’s son offered him a N100 million bribe in Lagos to support the President publicly.

Isah said he declined the offer because he couldn't endorse a President who had failed to deliver on his campaign promises, adding that, consequent upon that, he was assaulted, stripped, and abducted by thugs.

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Responding to the allegation on Friday, Seyi denied any involvement in the alleged attack or abduction, denying ever meeting Isah, whom he accused of fabricating the story to tarnish his reputation.

Atiku cautions Tinubu's family

In his reaction, Atiku said it's condemnable the alleged attempt by Tinubu's family to intimidate and control NANS or any civil society organisation using threats, violence, or financial inducement.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must urgently rein in his family members, particularly his son, Seyi Tinubu, who appears determined to purchase political loyalty for his father by any means necessary, including coercion, violence, and intimidation," he stated.

“The serious allegations made by the President of the National Association of Nigerian Students, Comrade Atiku Isah — alleging physical assault, abduction, and inducement at the hands of Seyi Tinubu — are deeply alarming and strike at the core of democratic norms and civil liberty. That such grave accusations are being levelled against a member of the first family is both disturbing and dangerous.

“Had this incident ended fatally, it would have been recorded among the growing list of atrocities committed by criminal elements in the country. That it is allegedly tied to the President’s own son makes it even more horrifying. What’s worse is the emerging suggestion that even top security officials are not beyond Seyi Tinubu’s overreaching influence — an unacceptable compromise of state institutions.

“It is intolerable that the first family would seek to subjugate the NANS — or any civil society group — through threats, bribes, or brute force. Nigeria is a democratic republic, not a monarchy handed down to one family.”

The former Vice President stressed that the NANS president's advocacy and public position should be assessed based on facts, not falsehoods.

“Well-meaning Nigerians must rise to speak out. The actions of the President’s family — specifically their rabid drive to consolidate political power through manipulation and fear — must be condemned unequivocally. We must remind them that the presidency is a public trust, not a private inheritance," Atiku added.

“Attempts to drag former Vice President Atiku Abubakar into this scandal by alleging a political alliance with Comrade Isah are baseless, malicious, and desperate. Atiku Abubakar’s meeting with Isah was centred solely on education reform and improving student welfare, which also includes institutions he founded, like the American University of Nigeria and AUN Academy.

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“Comrade Isah’s advocacy and public stance must be evaluated based on fact, not fiction. The allegations of abuse he has made demand an independent investigation, especially since the very agencies meant to protect citizens appear complicit in his ordeal.

“We issue a clear warning: nothing must happen to this young man. Any harm to him will not go unnoticed or unchallenged. Nigerians deserve truth, accountability, and a leadership that respects the rule of law — not a regime that weaponises power to silence dissent.”