Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has shared a startling story about his time with former President Olusegun Obasanjo in prison.
Atiku said he once leaked information about an injection allegedly meant to kill Obasanjo while both men were behind bars. According to Daily Post, Atiku made the revelation while recalling his long and sometimes difficult relationship with the former president.
The former vice president said he discovered the alleged plan and decided to act. Rather than keep quiet, Atiku said he leaked the information about the injection to prevent it from being used against Obasanjo.
The incident happened during a tense period when both men were detained under military rule. Their time in prison later became part of the story that brought them together politically.
After their release, Atiku and Obasanjo eventually became allies. They joined forces ahead of the 1999 presidential election and won under the Peoples Democratic Party.
For a while, the partnership appeared strong but things later changed. Their relationship became increasingly difficult during Obasanjo’s second term as president. Atiku opposed the former president’s controversial third-term bid.
That disagreement eventually pushed the two men apart. Since then, their political relationship has been marked by disagreements, competing interests and occasional public exchanges. That history makes Atiku’s latest revelation particularly striking. It offers a glimpse into a period when the two men were facing a very different reality.
They were not presidential contenders or political rivals then. They were detainees living through an uncertain and dangerous period. Atiku’s account suggests that, despite what their relationship later became, he once felt compelled to protect Obasanjo.
Decades later, both men remain influential figures in Nigerian politics. Atiku is now a leading opposition politician preparing for another major political battle ahead of the 2027 election.
Obasanjo, meanwhile, continues to weigh in on major national issues and political developments. Atiku’s latest account has now brought one of the lesser-known chapters of that journey back into the spotlight.
