Former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, has reportedly been issued a Visa to the United States of America.
Atiku, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2019 election has departed Nigeria.
This comes days after Nigeria’s minister of information and culture, Lai Mohammed, cautioned U S authorities against issuing Atiku a visa into the country.
According to a family source, Atiku has left Nigeria for the United Kingdom, where he will spend some time before flying to the United States.
According to the report, Atiku’s recent success at the US Embassy is connected to the ” critical role former President Olusegun Obasanjo played in breaking the 13-year-old jinx.
The former vice president had not travelled to America for over a decade fueling speculations of his possible arrest following his alleged bribery scandal involving a former US congressman, William Jefferson.
Atiku was accused of demanding a bribe of $500,000 to facilitate the award of contracts to two American telecommunication firms in Nigeria.
Some members of the Nigeria’s ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and other political opponents had taunted Atiku over his inability to visit the US.
Battle for 2019 Presidency
While next year’s election, scheduled for February 16, 2019, is expected to be keenly-contested between Atiku and President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC), they both faced competition from other candidates including Donald Duke of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Kingsley Moghalu of the Young Progressive Party (YPP), Obiageli Ezekwesili of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN), Fela Durotoye of the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN), and Omoyele Sowore of the African Action Congress (AAC).
Others are Tope Fasua of the Abundance Nigeria Renewal Party (ANRP), Eunice Atuejide of the National Interest Party (NIP), Adesina Fagbenro-Byron of the Kowa Party (KP), Chike Ukaegbu of the Advanced Allied Party (AAP), Hamza Al-Mustapha of the People’s Party of Nigeria (PPN), Obadiah Mailafia of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and many more.
