Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has characterized his All

Progressives Congress (APC) adversary, Bola Tinubu, as an absent candidate.

The former vice president, according to spokesman Phrank Shaibu, said on Wednesday that Nigerians will not elect a “ghost President.”

Shaibu accused Tinubu of avoiding public scrutiny and using proxies to address issues that only candidates should answer.

The reply came in the aftermath of the former Lagos governor’s town hall meeting with the Organized Private Sector (OPS).

Tinubu “dodged” the Lagos Chamber of Commerce Industry (LCCI) invitation, according to Shaibu, but “arranged his own” at Eko Hotel and Suites, the same place as the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) convention, which he did not attend.

According to the assistant, Tinubu sat on the top table and systematically dodged questioning after reading his speech.

“At the event, his assistants spoke more than he did, indicating that he didn’t really need to be there in the first place.”

“Clearly, Tinubu intends to lead a proxy administration if, by chance, he wins the presidential election.”

Shaibu remembers Tinubu speaking at the KADInvest program in October about how Governor Nasir El-Rufai turned a “rotten situation into a horrible one.”

According to the aide, Tinubu unveiled his proposal to enroll 50 million youths into the military last year in Kano in order to combat unemployment.

Shaibu also recalled the APC candidate advising Nigerians to renew their expired Permanent Voters Cards (PVC).

The comment prompted the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to respond.

According to the PDP, Nigerians would not ignore warning flags, which is “why Tinubu’s aides have continued to shelter him from open public interactions and scrutiny.”

The opposition also slammed the APC co-claim founder that leadership requires mental capacity rather than physical power.

Noting that citizens have suffered as a result of the APC’s “seven-year misrule,” Atiku’s camp hopes Tinubu will be bold enough to participate in a presidential debate.