Reacting to the lingering crisis in a statement by his Media Office, the former Vice President said the two sides have a responsibility to show flexibility rather than adopting a maximalist posture on their demands.

According to him, both the government and labour leaders should be united by the common interest of ordinary Nigerians who are bearing the crunch of the seeming stalemate.

He said unless the two sides are realistic, the nation stands the risk of reaching a cul-de-sac in the negotiations, thereby compounding the hardship of millions who are earnestly awaiting a speedy end to this crisis.

The former Vice President particularly urged the two sides to listen to the reason rather than bending to the dictates of their egos, which might lead to avoidable complications in finding a workable solution to the subsidy crisis.

Atiku Abubakar noted that sacrifices were needed by both sides to ensure that the final resolution serves the best interest of the economy and the people.

The former Vice President, however, condemned the killings by the security agents and the violence and arson on public and private property by a section of the protesters.

While urging for restraint by both parties, he advised labour leaders not to allow criminal elements to infiltrate their ranks and discredit the essence of legitimate peaceful protest.

Signed:

Atiku Media Office

61 Ebitu Ukiwe Street

Jabi

Abuja

In his New Year message to Nigerians, which was released by his media office in Abuja, the former Vice President noted that the level of resources available to elected leaders must justify the legitimate expectations of the electorate for better quality of life.

According to him, thirteen years of unbroken democratic governance should give the people valid reasons to expect reasonable improvements in their lives.

He regretted that Nigeria is one of the societies where politicians are so openly hated not because democracy is bad per se but because of the fact that they abandon the people once they are sworn into office.

In his words: "When elected leaders abandon the people, alienation sets in and ultimately making the voters to develop apathy towards democratic governance and resentment towards the leaders. The people see their votes as an investment to better their future."

The former Vice President also noted that a repeated failure to keep promises made carries the risk of the people losing faith, let alone caring to defend democracy.

The Turaki Adamawa regretted that the wanton display of wealth by leaders at a time the living conditions of the people is degenerating at alarming rate is irreconcilable with the primary objectives of providing selfless and honest service to the people.

He further noted that the perception of democratic rule as a gravy train has led to all manner of politicians seeking power. According to him, the main attraction to politics should be selfless service and not money making.

Expressing concern at how corruption has destroyed the quality of governance, Atiku Abubakar said leaders preoccupied with money making would not be committed to the welfare of the people.

He however, noted that as Nigerians enter the New Year, leaders must do a soul-searching and restore the hope of the people in the democratic system.

Signed:

Atiku Media Office

61 Ebitu Ukiwe Street

Jabi

Abuja

In a condolence message issued in Abuja by his media office, Atiku Abubakar recalled that Ojukwu's role as a key actor in Nigeria's political development cannot be easily forgotten.

He said Ojukwu was a tremendously respected and influential politician whose endorsement was frequently needed by others to build their political careers.

According to Atiku, history had cast the late Ojukwu into a role and he played that part to the best of his abilities.

The former Vice President recalled that the late Ikemba of Nnewi was always consulted by successive governments in Nigeria in their efforts to consolidate unity, harmony and cohesion in the country.

"Because of his tremendous influence on the hearts and minds of the people, the late Ojukwu was an icon in every sense of the word. Even if you disagreed with the Ikemba, you cannot ignore his father-figure stature and colossal influence," the Turakin Adamawa added.

The former Vice President prayed to God to grant Ojukwu's soul eternal rest in peace. He also condoled his family, the Anambra State government and the entire people of the state for the loss of what he described as one of Nigeria's brightest political stars.

Signed:

Atiku Media Office

In a letter of felicitation, which he personally signed and released by Atiku Media Office in Abuja, President Jonathan prayed divine blessings to the former Vice President and wished him many more years of fulfillment.

The President also wished Atiku God's guidance and prosperity as he celebrates his 65th birthday on Friday.

Also, the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) in a statement in Kaduna wished the Turaki well on the occasion of his 65^th birthday.

The statement signed by Secretary of the forum, Anthony Sani acknowledged that the day is worth celebrating considering the worthy contributions that the former Vice President has made to socio-economic and political development of Nigeria.

"The Turaki Adamawa is a jaunty face of democratic values of rule of law as the only instrument that can sustain democratic practices. That may explain why he used the law courts to seek redress, which went a long way towards enriching substantially our democratic practices," ACF said.

According to the ACF, the former Vice President's commitment to self reliance accounts for why he has over time used his vast experiences both in public and private practices to help build peoples' capacity to support themselves and in the process make some difference in the lives of others.

"The Turaki Adamawa is a man of God who panders to Sarduana's philosophy that success comes from capacity to make compromises and make friends of former foes. We see this trait in his daily life to date," it added.

The ACF prayed to God to preserve the former Vice President to celebrate many more years of life for the common good.

Receiving an 11-member peace delegation of the ACF led by the former Deputy Governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Ahmed Gusau, the former Vice President also noted that the socio-economic challenges, which provided the spark for negative backlash, must be treated with urgent priority.

According to the former Vice President, there is no part of Nigeria that doesn't face security challenges and, therefore, the factors that give rise to them must be tackled as well.

He emphasized that the development of the human capital is a key to economic development, noting that nations can achieve development without oil and gas. He cited the Japanese success story as a good example of what human capital can achieve.

The former Vice President reminded the ACF leaders that they could not detach themselves from politics entirely because politics creeps into many issues. He, however, noted that the current consultation by the ACF leaders would go a long way to help it find its bearing.

Earlier, leader of the delegation, Alhaji Ahmed Gusau and other members of his team, including General Lawrence Onoja, emphasized the urgent task of halting the current orgy of killings between Muslims and Christians in the North. They regretted the fact that the North could not achieve progress with death and destruction.

Also in the delegation were Sardauna Katsina, former IGP Alhaji Ibrahim Coomassie (rtd),  Col. Johan Ubah (rtd), Bitrus Gwadah (Esq), Baba Sule Bisalla, J. M. Alabi, Alhaji Mohammed Ibrahim, Fati E. Ibrahim, Hajiya Halima Alfa and M. Bukar Zarma.

In a tribute to Ibru released by his media office in Abuja, the former Vice President extolled the late publisher as a unique Nigerian who never used his newspaper to seek political influence or personal advantages from those in the corridors of power.

According to Atiku, the late publisher gave Nigerians a quality newspaper, which earned it the respect of all.

Describing the late Guardian newspaper Chairman and Publisher as a rare Nigerian, the former Vice President said Mr. Ibru has left behind the legacy of a fiercely independent newspaper, which is read by many.

"Building and sustaining The Guardian as a formidable newspaper that speaks truth to power at all times is a rare feat in Africa, where dictatorships still hold sway, despite the practice of democratic rule," Atiku added.

He condoled the Ibru family, Government and people of Delta State, the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) and the management and staff of The Guardian over the tragic loss.

Signed:

Atiku Media Office

61 Ebitu Ukiwe Street

Jabi

Utako district

Abuja

www.atiku.org

www.facebook.com/atiku11

www.twitter.com/atiku11

The former Vice President who spoke against the backdrop of rising wave of insecurity in the country said that it is counter-productive to treat security as though it is disconnected from economic and political development, when in fact, they are inter-related.

Speaking at the Founder's Day celebration of the American University of Nigeria (AUN), Yola over the weekend, Atiku Abubakar said that for the country to enthrone a new regime of security, it must move quickly to address the socio-economic challenges facing the nation.

He listed the challenges to include high levels of unemployment and illiteracy and poor and unaccountable governance.

"Put another way, it (insecurity) largely results from the inability of the government to fulfill the aspirations of our people, especially our young people," Atiku Abubakar said in the speech titled "Addressing the Socio-Economic Dimensions of Nigeria's Internal Security Challenges."

The former Vice President said that the focus on sophisticated security gadgets and equipment, intelligence gathering and personnel, among others is important, but "perhaps, more important is the need to get our economy humming so that the vast army of unemployed people in this country can have jobs not only to earn an income but to contribute to the development of the country."

Equally important, Atiku noted, is the need to fix the educational system and to ensure that the nation's young people are in school.

"What kind of society are we building when about 80% of school-age children in the North East and some parts of the North-West are not in school?" he queried.

He noted that the twin goals of economic development and nation-building have become even more urgent as Nigeria's economy continues to sputter and national cohesion becomes ever more frayed.

However, the former Vice President said that in order to accelerate our nation-building process we need to be engaged in rapid economic development to improve people's living standards and to help legitimize the state and leadership of the country; equitable development of the various regions that compose the country and democratic freedoms which allow people to discuss and agree on the kind of nation they would like to build.

In addition, he stressed on the need for mutual respect and tolerance of social difference based on religion, ethnicity, language and, above all, the protection of lives and property, among others.

But he said that good governance is the key to starting to address these critical socio-economic challenges.

"Good, efficient and cost-effective governance will prioritize government programmes, mobilize and focus our energies on what needs to be done urgently, enforce rules, value the people, show fairness and equity and assist and protect the most needy and vulnerable," Atiku Abubakar said.

He identified  priorities that would enable Nigeria  realize its full potential as massive investments in infrastructure development for their immediate employment impact; massive investments in and revitalization of education so we have highly skilled labour and better informed citizens and improvements in health care delivery so that we have a healthy workforce and citizenry.

Others are massive improvements in the security sector, including equipment, personnel, training, intelligence gathering and better coordination of the various relevant agencies and between them and their foreign counterparts and concerted efforts to address the cries of neglect and marginalization by different sections of the country in order to renew our federalism (including making investments that address the peculiar needs and resource endowments of specific regions).