I Remain Nigeria's Largest Employer of Labour, Atiku Boasts...Releases List of His Companies

Atiku Abubakar, Nigeria's former Vice President .

In response to the various speculations making the rounds regarding the number of companies owned by the a former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, he has come out to lay to rest as to the exact number of companies to his credit.

Atiku, as he is popularly called, took to his twitter handle earlier in the week, boasting that he remains the largest private employer of labour in Nigeria. He disclosed this while speaking on the need to prioritise employment generation in the country.

According to him, “As an individual, I believe my record in employing young Nigerians is unrivalled by any single private investor in Nigeria. Tell me who has investments in that cuts across the media, shipping, education, and other sectors of the Nigerian economy?” he queried, adding that he currently employs over 50,000 staff in various capacities across his companies.

Recently, Atiku had been accused of being the financier behind MIKANO, an alternative power generation company, involved in the production of electricity generators, which has been alleged in some quarters as being one of such companies responsible for the epileptic power supply in the country on account of its vast interests in the power sector, an allegation no one has been able to substantiate yet.

However, to support his claim as being the largest employer of labour in Nigeria, the former VP has come out with a list of the companies he owned as listed below:

1. Intels Intels Nigeria Limited: provides integrated logistics services for the Nigerian oil and gas industry. It offers agency services; cargo services; port management and support services in shore bases; and manages client operations, including pipe racks, stacking areas, warehousing, enclosed areas, jetties, offices, water tanks, fuel storage, generators, compressors, and various other services and facilities.

2. Prodeco Prodeco—operates in Nigeria with two companies: Prodeco (Property Development Company) operating within the main territory of Nigeria and Prodeco International, operating in Oil & Gas Free Zones. The first company was incorporated in March 1996 as a property development company. Over the years, PRODECO has engaged in building, marine, and infrastructural construction for various clients in the oil and gas industry.

3. Atiku Abubakar Farms: He also has a farm in Adamawa State. In 1981 he moved into agriculture, acquiring 2,500 hectares of land near Yola to start a maize and cotton farm. The business fell on hard times and closed in 1986.

"My first foray into agriculture, in the 1980s, ended in failure," he was quoted to have sometimes in 2014. But in recent years, the farm has expanded and progressed sgnificantly.

4. ABTI Schools: The major part of this is the American University of Nigeria (AUN). It is located in the city of Yola, the Capital of Adamawa, Northwestern zone of Nigeria. The campus, which occupies nearly 1000 hectares, is a serene mixture of desert and farmland.