Atiku Laments Horrific Economic Desperation Among Youth, Vows to Make Nigeria Affordable Again

Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has expressed profound outrage over reports indicating that young Nigerians are being driven by extreme economic distress to sell their vital organs, particularly kidneys, in a bid to stay alive.

In a statement addressing the state of the nation, Atiku described the emerging trend as a heartbreaking reality that should shake the conscience of the country. He warned that when citizens begin to regard their own organs as emergency savings, society has moved past ordinary economic difficulty into frightening levels of desperation. According to the former Vice President, Nigerian youths should be building careers, launching businesses, and commercializing creative ideas rather than calculating the black-market value of their body parts to cover basic survival expenses.

The ADC standard-bearer attributed the phenomenon to severe inflationary pressures and harsh policies under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration. He observed that the essentials required to live with dignity—ranging from food, public transit, and rent to electricity tariffs, medical supplies, and education fees—have become unaffordable for ordinary households. Responding to disclosures that young people are allegedly being paid around ₦1.7 million to surrender their kidneys, Atiku insisted that no administration should boast of economic reforms while its young population is reduced to parting with their bodies to eat or pay rent.

Atiku’s intervention comes in the wake of an operation by the Nigeria Police Force, whose Special Tactical Squad dismantled an alleged organ-trafficking and human exploitation ring operating across Nasarawa State and the Federal Capital Territory. Police operatives apprehended four suspects, including two medical doctors specialized in nephrology, over allegations of targeting financially desperate youths and luring them to clinics for organ extraction.

While acknowledging that Nigeria has clear laws prohibiting commercial organ trade, Atiku argued that law enforcement alone cannot address the vulnerability that makes citizens easy prey for criminal networks. He maintained that legal bans must be paired with compassionate governance, calling for reforms that guarantee affordable food, accessible healthcare, cheaper transport, and real economic opportunities for the next generation.