By Abiola Olawale
Former Vice President and 2023 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has once again launched a scathing criticism of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, accusing him of showing little regard for Nigerians grappling with escalating insecurity and economic hardship.
In a statement shared via X on Sunday, April 20, 2025, Atiku criticized Tinubu’s absence from the country during a time of heightened violence, particularly in Benue State, where recent attacks in the Ukum Local Government Area left numerous casualties.
Atiku expressed dismay over what he described as Tinubu’s lack of empathy and leadership, noting that the president has been “galivanting across Europe” while Nigeria faces a worsening security crisis.
He highlighted the violent attacks in Benue’s Logo and Gbagir communities, which claimed several lives, as a reminder of what he described as the “government’s failure to protect its citizens.”
The former Vice President also contrasted Tinubu’s actions with global leaders like former United States President Barack Obama and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, who prioritized returning home during national crises.
Atiku also referenced former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, who cut short a 2014 trip to Equatorial Guinea following a bomb blast in Abuja, as an example of expected leadership.
Atiku argued that these frequent foreign trips, particularly amid Nigeria’s economic and security challenges, demonstrate contempt for the Nigerian people.
He asserted: “The Tinubu administration has proven, time and again, to be utterly incapable, wholly incompetent, and completely devoid of any coherent ideas for tackling Nigeria’s deepening security crisis.
“This is not just my position — it is a growing consensus among political opposition leaders, respected security experts, and even members within the ruling party who, though too timid to speak publicly, confess this uncomfortable truth behind closed doors.
“The blood of innocent Nigerians continues to be spilt with appalling regularity — most recently in the Logo and Gbagir communities of Ukum LGA in Benue State.
“Yet, the Tinubu presidency remains disturbingly indifferent, displaying neither urgency nor the basic decency of public empathy.
“Leadership demands presence. In 2016, President Barack Obama cut short an important diplomatic visit to return home after five police officers were killed in a lone gunman attack.
“In 2019, President Cyril Ramaphosa abandoned a state visit to Egypt to return to South Africa amid an electricity crisis.
“Even U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, heavily criticised for fleeing to Mexico during a deadly winter storm in Texas, eventually returned and acknowledged his mistake.
“In our history, President Goodluck Jonathan returned from Equatorial Guinea in 2014 following a deadly bomb blast in Abuja.
“That is the expected minimum in moments of national trauma.
“Yet President Bola Tinubu, incapable of solving Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, chooses instead to gallivant across Europe — governing Nigeria in absentia as if from a holiday perch.
“If he cannot act, the least he can do is show up. If he cannot lead with empathy, he should at least attempt to perform it. Nigeria is bleeding. Nigerians are dying. The president is nowhere to be found.
“An inept administration may not suddenly discover competence. But we will not stop calling it out. If Tinubu cannot deliver safety and dignity to Nigerians, the very least he can do is pretend to care.”
It would be recalled that on April 2, Tinubu departed Nigeria for France on a two-week “working visit”.
During Tinubu’s stay in France, there has been an uptick in killings and abductions by gunmen in several parts of the country, notably in the Plateau and Benue states.
Last week, the president left Paris for London.
Following concerns about the continued absence of Tinubu, the Presidency released a statement, declaring that the President is ruling Nigeria from Europe.
A statement released on Thursday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, assured Nigerians that President Bola Tinubu remains actively in charge of the nation’s affairs despite his current stay in Europe.
According to the statement, Tinubu has remained in constant communication with top government officials at home.
Onanuga, in the statement also announced that Tinubu is expected to return home shortly after the Easter holidays.
