27/09/2026
Atiku Abubakar as Vice President (1999-2007). when he provided the political backbone for Nigeria’s historic banking consolidation.
Let us begin with the records In 2004, Nigeria’s financial system stood on the brink. Eighty-nine banks, most undercapitalized and poorly governed, held the nation’s savings yet could neither lend to the real economy nor survive a serious shock. Collapse was a matter of time.
What saved the system was not luck, but leadership.
When Central Bank Governor Charles Soludo proposed a ₦25 billion minimum capital base, he declared war on a powerful status quo. Bank owners lobbied desperately. Political pressure mounted to stop or kill the reform.
It survived because Atiku gave it political cover. He understood that no modern economy can rise on fragile banks. Within the presidency, he shielded Soludo from interference and ensured the government did not flinch.
Where others feared the cost of action, Atiku feared the greater cost of inaction.
The result was historic, and documented. 89 fragile banks bargained into 25 strong institutions. That remains one of Africa’s boldest economic reforms.
After two decades, the proof endures. Access Bank is now Nigeria’s largest bank, with over ₦53 trillion in assets and 60 million customers across 20 countries.
UBA holds over ₦33 trillion, operating in 20 African nations plus London, New York, Paris and Dubai.
Zenith Bank, with ₦32 trillion, ranks among Africa’s top 20. That is now part of our records.
That is what competent reform delivers. confidence, scale, continental relevance.
Today. Under Tinubu, Nigerians endure hardship branded as reform, but can’t see the transformation. The naira has collapsed, inflation has crushed households, businesses are closing. Policies are announced without preparation and executed without competence.
Atiku offers the opposite. reform with vision, executed with courage and integrity. He has done it before, building institutions that still stand.
Reform. Competence. Integrity. This is what Atiku represents.
IT’S ATIKU O’CLOCK.
©️ Shafiu Balarabe