Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has responded strongly to former President Olusegun Obasanjo over recent remarks describing him as the biggest mistake of his presidency, insisting he has no regrets for opposing the controversial third-term agenda and maintaining that history cannot be rewritten.

Obasanjo had, on Friday in Lagos, said choosing Atiku as his running mate in the 1999 presidential election was the biggest mistake he made as president. He made the remark during a fireside conversation with veteran entertainer and activist Charles Oputa (Charly Boy) at the public presentation of Charly Boy’s foundation and memoir, 999: A Memoir in Tribute to Late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa.

Reacting in a statement issued on Saturday by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku described Obasanjo’s comments as “another failed attempt to rewrite history.”

The former vice-president defended his decision to oppose the third-term agenda during the Obasanjo administration, saying he remained proud of standing by the Nigerian Constitution rather than personal loyalty.

“I am proud that I stood against the third-term agenda. I am proud that I stood by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I have no apology whatsoever for frustrating every attempt to subvert our democracy for personal ambition,” Atiku said.

He added that if Obasanjo’s resentment was rooted in his refusal to support an unconstitutional third term, he would gladly wear it “as a badge of honour,” stressing that no individual is greater than Nigeria and that the Constitution remains supreme.

According to Atiku, the struggle against the third-term agenda was not about personalities but about safeguarding Nigeria’s constitutional democracy for future generations. He said democracy ultimately prevailed and that history had already delivered its verdict.

Atiku also challenged Obasanjo’s account of their political relationship, insisting that he stood firmly by the former president while he was imprisoned, supported his family, clothed him and worked with other patriots to secure his release.

He further claimed that after Obasanjo regained his freedom, he received and supported him, helped him regain his footing, mobilised political structures, built alliances and made significant personal and political sacrifices that contributed to Obasanjo’s emergence as Nigeria’s president in 1999.

Despite the deterioration of their relationship, Atiku said he had no regrets about helping Obasanjo, describing acts of kindness as matters of conscience rather than transactions deserving repayment. However, he maintained that gratitude should never be replaced with revisionism.

The former vice-president also referred to recent comments by the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who, according to him, acknowledged the achievements of the economic management team he led. He argued that while respected public officials continued to recognise his contributions to one of Nigeria’s most successful periods of economic management, Obasanjo appeared determined to diminish them.

Atiku expressed disappointment that, at a time Nigeria is grappling with economic hardship, insecurity and unemployment, the former president was revisiting old political disagreements instead of offering solutions.

He said the 2027 general election should focus on rebuilding the country, restoring security, reviving the economy and giving hope to the next generation, rather than reopening old political wounds.

Although he said he had exercised restraint out of respect for Obasanjo and the office he once occupied, Atiku insisted he could no longer remain silent in the face of what he described as repeated distortions of history.

“Chief Obasanjo is entitled to his opinions. He is entitled to his personal grievances. What he is not entitled to are his own facts,” he said.

Atiku concluded by saying his attention remained fixed on Nigeria’s future, stressing that he had chosen the path of service over resentment, vision over vendetta and national renewal over personal recrimination.

He added that history could neither be rewritten by bitterness nor erased by repeated falsehoods, insisting that, in the end, history and the Nigerian people would render the final verdict.