Former Vice-President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, has defended his record on education and support for vulnerable children after being challenged over the continued sight of children begging on Nigerian streets.

Atiku responded on Friday after an X user, @Oluwabunmi63697, shared a photograph of children carrying begging bowls and questioned what the former Vice-President did about the situation during his eight years in office.

“Have you ever addressed this, sir? You were VP for 8 years, these innocent children are in your region and you couldn’t do anything to stop this calamity,” the user wrote.

Responding, Atiku said the plight of children on the streets should concern the entire country, while pointing to initiatives associated with the American University of Nigeria, which he established in Yola, Adamawa State.

“I understand your concern. The sight of children begging on our streets should trouble every Nigerian,” Atiku wrote.

He explained that locating the university in Yola, rather than commercially stronger cities such as Abuja or Lagos, was part of his effort to contribute to the development of the North.

“I established the American University of Nigeria as a practical investment in education and the development of the North.

“If profit had been my primary motivation, I could easily have located the university in Abuja or Lagos, where the commercial advantages would have been greater,” he said.

Atiku said the decision to establish AUN in Yola was intended to expand access to quality education and create opportunities for people in the North-East.

“I chose Yola because I wanted to invest in my people, create opportunities, and bring world-class education closer to a region that had long needed greater access and development,” he added.

The ADC presidential candidate also rejected the perception that AUN is his personal or family property, saying ownership had been transferred to the community.

“And as I have publicly stated before, this university is not my personal property or that of my family. I have already signed a deed of gift transferring it to the community. AUN belongs to the community it was established to serve,” he said.

Atiku further cited the university’s Feed and Read programme, which provides vulnerable Almajiri children with daily meals while teaching them literacy and numeracy.

He also said AUN’s Technology-Enhanced Learning for All initiative had helped more than 20,000 internally displaced children learn to read through educational radio programmes.

Turning to the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction, Atiku said AUN also intervened by offering scholarships to some of the girls who escaped Boko Haram.

“Following the Chibok tragedy in 2014, seven years after I left office, AUN awarded scholarships to young women who had escaped Boko Haram, giving them an opportunity to rebuild their lives through education,” he said.

Reports at the time confirmed that 15 girls who escaped the Chibok abduction were offered scholarships at AUN.

Atiku maintained that education has remained central to his response to the challenges facing vulnerable children, arguing that children should not be left to survive by begging on the streets.

“My conviction remains simple: every child belongs in a classroom, not on the street with a begging bowl.

“Whether in government or outside it, I have always sought to turn that conviction into practical action,” he said.

His response came amid his broader criticism of the economic hardship in Nigeria, as he argued that rising costs of food, transportation, rent, school fees, medicine and electricity are placing increasing pressure on citizens.

Atiku had also criticised reports of young Nigerians allegedly resorting to selling their kidneys for money, saying, “Young Nigerians should be selling dreams, ideas and innovation, not their body organs.”

The exchange has again pushed the issue of child begging, poverty and access to education into the spotlight, while Atiku continues to position education and economic opportunity as key parts of his political message ahead of the 2027 elections.