The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has taken aim at President Bola Tinubu for prolonging his working vacation in Europe, arguing that he should instead be at home confronting Nigeria’s mounting security and economic problems.
In a statement issued by Ini Ememobong, National Publicity Secretary of the party’s Interim National Working Committee, the PDP said the President’s continued absence was poorly timed given the hardship many Nigerians are currently enduring, pointing to insecurity, economic strain, and a deepening sense of despair among citizens.
The opposition party also criticized Tinubu for skipping the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, where Vice President Kashim Shettima is standing in for Nigeria. The PDP argued that if the President wasn’t willing to return home to tackle the nation’s problems directly, he should at least have used the UNGA platform to rally international support for the country.
It described the President’s choice to remain on holiday, rather than engage on either front, as difficult to justify given the scale of the challenges Nigeria is facing.
The party insisted that Nigerians are entitled to question how the President is discharging his duties, noting that Tinubu actively pursued the presidency and became answerable to the electorate the moment he took the oath of office. It further questioned why a President already in Europe would not make the short trip to attend the UN gathering and press Nigeria’s case on the world stage.
“There is no greater insult to the presidential mandate than this,” the PDP said.
The party urged Nigerians to keep the episode in mind at the polls, stressing that the country needs a leader willing to work both domestically and internationally. “This must guide our choices at the ballot in January, during the presidential elections,” it said, “because we need a President who is ready, willing and able to work conscientiously for our country, locally and internationally.”
Responding to the criticism, the Presidency has maintained that Tinubu’s absence from the UNGA will not affect Nigeria’s participation in the global summit.
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