Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has distanced himself from a fraudulent empowerment scheme circulating on social media, which promises Nigerians N65,000.

Atiku, in a statement issued by his media aide, Paul Ibe, clarified that a group named “Travelling Abroad Opportunities” has been promoting a deceptive program falsely advertised as the “Atiku Grant by FG.”

Atiku urged security agencies to investigate the promoters of the scheme, which requests applicants to provide personal details, including their name, account number, and bank information, in exchange for the N65,000 grant.

The statement emphasized that neither Atiku nor any organization connected to him is involved in such a scheme. He stressed, “For the avoidance of doubt, His Excellency Atiku Abubakar, the former Vice President of Nigeria (1999-2007) and Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (2023), is not currently running an empowerment scheme that purports to give N65,000 to successful applicants.”

Atiku further stated that if he were to engage in such a program, it would be done directly and not through a third party or an unknown group. He described the so-called “Atiku Grant by FG” as a scam designed to deceive unsuspecting Nigerians and swindle them of their hard-earned money.

The former Vice President has called on the authorities to take immediate action against those responsible for this fraudulent initiative and other similar schemes that aim to exploit innocent citizens.