NEWS
Atiku’s US Lobbyist, Dr. Karl Von Batten Deletes Post Announcing Trump Appointment Amid Controversy
Dr. Karl Von Batten, a Washington-based lobbyist working with former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has deleted a social media post announcing his purported appointment by United States President Donald Trump to a White House presidential commission.
The development has generated fresh attention after checks on the verified X account of Von Batten’s firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, L.C., showed that the post announcing the appointment is no longer available.
The firm had earlier announced that its managing partner had been appointed by President Trump as a commissioner, a development that quickly attracted reactions in Nigeria’s political space.
However, Sunday Dare, a media aide to President Bola Tinubu, sought to clarify the nature and significance of the appointment, describing it as a position on the Commission on Presidential Scholars.
According to Dare, the commission is an education-focused panel administered by the United States Department of Education and does not have any mandate relating to US foreign policy, national security, diplomacy or bilateral relations with Nigeria.
The clarification has placed the deleted announcement under renewed scrutiny, particularly over the manner in which the appointment was initially presented and its potential political implications in Nigeria.
Von Batten is the managing partner of Von Batten-Montague-York, L.C., a Washington-based lobbying and public affairs firm that has been engaged by Atiku Abubakar to help strengthen his reputational standing and political profile in the United States.
Beyond his lobbying activities, Von Batten has also been involved in efforts surrounding the release of US law enforcement records relating to allegations concerning President Bola Tinubu and alleged links to drug trafficking.
The controversy comes as political activity ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 presidential election continues to intensify, with competing political camps increasingly turning to international networks, lobbying firms and foreign institutions to advance their respective interests.
The deletion of the post has therefore added another layer to an already politically charged development, even as questions remain about the precise circumstances surrounding the announcement and its subsequent removal.