NEWS LEVERAGE

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has launched a blistering critique of President Bola Tinubu, condemning his extended stay in France as Nigeria faces escalating violence and deepening hardship.

In a strongly worded statement on Wednesday, Atiku accused the president of turning his back on the country during a period of national emergency.

Through his spokesperson, Paul Ibe, Atiku argued that Tinubu’s so-called “working visit” to France, which began on April 2, 2025, is a poorly disguised vacation, noting that the president has already spent nearly two months in the country since assuming office.

“At a time when Nigerians are being slaughtered and hunger is tightening its grip on millions, the president is gallivanting abroad,” Atiku said.

He lambasted Tinubu’s handling of the crises in Plateau and Benue States, where mass killings and persistent violence have reportedly claimed over a hundred lives. “The nation is burning, and the commander-in-chief is nowhere to be found,” the statement read.

The former PDP presidential candidate didn’t stop there, he accused Tinubu of borrowing heavily to fund frivolous foreign trips while the country battles unprecedented insecurity and economic decay.

He also dismissed Tinubu’s recent state of emergency declaration in Rivers State as politically driven, contrasting it with what he described as a real and urgent collapse of national security requiring immediate intervention.

Atiku demanded that Tinubu return to the country without delay, calling on him to declare a genuine state of emergency not in a single state for political convenience, but across the presidency itself. “This isn’t about politics anymore. Nigeria is bleeding, and leadership is nowhere in sight,” he declared.

He concluded with a stinging rebuke: “Whatever Tinubu claims to be doing in France, he could just as easily do from Lagos or even Iragbiji. What the country needs right now is presence, responsibility, and action, not excuses.”