Premium Times finds Atiku's 'Ask AA' platform lacks key details on privatization, assets
Premium Times examined Atiku Abubakar's new 'Ask AA' platform launched October 15 and found many answers avoid giving specific details voters need. When asked about public assets privatized under his supervision including buyers and sale prices, the platform referred questioners to the Bureau of Public Enterprises without providing any names, amounts or dates. On voluntary asset disclosure, Atiku said he's never shied away from declaring assets but offered no commitment to publish them publicly beyond required filings.
The platform also contained factual errors: it claimed Nigeria paid off $30 billion in foreign debt during his vice presidency, but the 2005 Paris Club settlement involved $18 billion debt cancellation plus $12.4 billion payable to creditors. It incorrectly named the Petroleum Technology Development Fund as the 'Petroleum Development Trust Fund' in both answers and source materials.
On policy questions like his proposed petrol subsidy, the platform cited funding sources but gave no annual cost estimate or budget cap amount. When asked about presidential term limits, it cited his experience but didn't commit to one term, stating only that 'the second term is not an automatic entitlement.'
While the platform uses AI to generate answers from campaign documents with human review unclear, Premium Times noted 12 of 100 sampled answers were 'partly responsive' for leaving significant question parts unanswered. For Nigerians seeking to scrutinize a presidential candidate, the ability to get specific, verifiable answers matters as much as being able to ask questions.