Peter Obi, LP’s candidate for the 2023 elections, called out President Bola Tinubu and VP Kashim Shettima for traveling abroad at the same time.
According to Obi, it’s a bit concerning that the trips are happening while the country is going through some tough times.
Tinubu went to the UK on October 2, 2024, for a two-week work break.
He later jetted off from the UK to France on Friday, October 11, for some “important stuff,” according to a tweet by Ibrahim Masari, his Senior Special Assistant on Political and Other Matters.
In the meantime, Shettima took off from Abuja on Wednesday to visit Sweden for two days, representing Nigeria in meetings with the Scandinavian country.
The Presidency said on Wednesday that Tinubu and his deputy being absent doesn’t leave a leadership gap in Nigeria.
The Presidency claimed that the two principal officers are actively involved in national affairs, even when they’re not present.
Obi found it troubling that Tinubu and his deputy were not present in the country when their presence was most needed, in reaction to the Presidency’s explanation.
He wrote, “While it is arguable that with the President and Vice President absent from the Villa, there is no vacancy in the Presidency, in a situation where both the President and Vice President are out of the country, as reported in the media yesterday, it’s concerning for a country with such myriads of domestic problems.
The President had told us he would only be gone for 14 days. The 14 days have passed now, and we are waiting to see him in the country. One would have expected him to return earlier than expected, considering the volume of work that needs to be done in a troubled nation like ours.
“The untold hardship that has been unleashed on our people as a result of some of his administration’s policies is unimaginable and we need his urgent attention to pilot the nation out of this present situation.”