Atiku backtracks, claims he called Sakaba’s sister not wife

Atiku Abubakar, the People’s Democratic Party’s presidential candidate has claimed he did not speak with the wife of the late Lt. Col Ibrahim Sakaba but with the younger sister of the late soldier.

The soldier was killed last month by Boko Haram insurgents during an attack on 157 Task Force Battalion in Metele, Borno State.

Atiku had claimed that he called the widow of the late soldier earlier on Sunday. A tweet from his verified Twitter handle, @atiku, reads: “This Christmas I urge all Nigerians to spare a thought for our military on the frontlines of the war on terror.

“I had cause to telephone Lt. Col. Ibrahim Sakaba’s widow this Yuletide. I am touched by her devotion and love for her husband who paid the supreme sacrifice for Nigeria.”

Mrs Sakaba, however, said she did not receive any call from Atiku.

“Why the lies? I have not received any call from Atiku please,” she told The Punch.

The former vice president has, however, retracted his earlier assertion.

In a statement on Monday, Atiku said he didn’t speak with the widow after unsuccessfully trying to reach her but spoke with the sister instead.

“Over the weekend, Atiku Abubakar was availed with phone numbers of Mrs Sakaba and Maryam, younger sister of the late soldier, in the alternative.

“On Sunday, the former Vice President tried albeit unsuccessfully to contact Mrs Sakaba but was able to eventually speak with Maryam, younger sister of the gallant soldier during which he expressed his deepest condolences to the family.

Atiku claimed the earlier assertion that he spoke to the widow was a communication error that he regrets.

“However, this communication was erroneously communicated. The error is regretted.”