Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has raised serious concerns over President Bola Tinubu’s decision to embark on a three-week vacation in Europe, arguing that the timing sends the wrong message to Nigerians who are struggling with soaring costs and persistent insecurity.
President Tinubu departed Abuja for London on Sunday, beginning what the Presidency has described as a working holiday and part of his annual leave.
But Atiku, in a statement released shortly after the President’s departure, said the move reflects a worrying disconnect between the government and the realities facing ordinary citizens.
“I have travelled, lived and spent time abroad, and I have never pretended otherwise. But there is a fundamental difference between the travels of a private citizen and the responsibility of the sitting President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Atiku said.
He pointed to the challenges Tinubu is leaving behind – petrol prices that have pushed transport costs beyond the reach of many families, food shortages that have forced households to ration meals, and an insecurity situation that continues to claim lives across the country.
“Leadership is not merely the constitutional right to occupy an office. It is the judgment to know when your country needs you at home,” he added.
Atiku drew a striking analogy to drive home his point. “A father may travel when all is well. But when his roof is burning and his family is trapped inside, he does not pick up his suitcase and head for the airport. That is the issue here. It is not that a President must never rest or travel. It is that Nigeria is burning, and the President has chosen a boarding pass over the fire extinguisher.”
The former Vice President also noted that Vice President Kashim Shettima is currently abroad on official duty, attending the African Union session in Luanda, Angola. This, he argued, makes Tinubu’s decision even more difficult to understand, as it leaves the country without its two top leaders at a critical moment.
“Millions of Nigerians are being grounded by hardship while their President is airborne. The people can barely afford to move, but the President keeps moving,” Atiku said.
He concluded with a direct challenge to the President and a preview of his own pitch for the 2027 election. “A government that cannot feel the pain it inflicts will never summon the will to end it. Tinubu made Nigeria expensive. I will make Nigeria affordable again.”
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