President Bola Tinubu is expected to return to Nigeria this week after spending several weeks abroad on what his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has described as a working vacation.
Onanuga, in a post on X, said the President was “hale and hearty” and had continued to work while away from Nigeria, arguing that Tinubu did not need to be physically present in Abuja to discharge his responsibilities as President.
“He has been on a working vacation, which he is perfectly entitled to. In this digital age, he does not need to be physically present in Abuja to do the work for which he was elected in 2023,” Onanuga said on Sunday.
He cited Tinubu’s meetings with investors in France, including what he described as the President’s recent role in facilitating a $7 billion deep-sea port in Ogun Waterside, an initiative of the Ogun State Government.
Onanuga’s comments come amid criticism from opposition figures over Tinubu’s prolonged absence from Nigeria and his decision not to physically attend the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.
The President left Nigeria on August 30 for what the Presidency initially described as a three-week annual vacation, travelling first to London before moving to Paris.
The Presidency subsequently announced that he had extended the working vacation by a few days and would return at the weekend.
Vice President Kashim Shettima represented Tinubu at the UNGA in New York, marking the third consecutive year that the President delegated his Vice President to lead Nigeria’s delegation to the gathering.
Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar had questioned Tinubu’s continued absence, asking whether the President had transmitted a written declaration to the leadership of the National Assembly to enable Shettima to act as President while he was away.
Atiku argued that Section 145 of the Constitution provides for such a declaration when the President proceeds on vacation and questioned whether Nigerians had been shown evidence that the procedure had been followed.
Similarly, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Party (NDC), Peter Obi, had earlier criticised Tinubu’s decision to spend his vacation in Europe, arguing that the President should instead be concerned with addressing challenges facing Nigerians. Obi also questioned why the President could not take his vacation within Nigeria.
But the Presidency has maintained that Tinubu remained in touch with developments at home and continued to direct the affairs of government while away.
It also said Shettima was carrying the President’s full mandate at the UNGA and that Nigeria’s interests would be vigorously advanced in New York.
Onanuga, meanwhile, compared Tinubu’s absence from the UNGA with that of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, saying neither leader attended this year’s gathering.
“The Nigerian President announced he was taking his annual vacation and delegated attendance to his able and dependable Vice President,” he said.
The presidential aide also rejected Peter Obi’s questions about Tinubu’s whereabouts.
“Yet Peter Obi pretends to be unaware of President Tinubu’s whereabouts and asks the puerile question his followers are asking on X,” Onanuga said.
According to Onanuga, Tinubu will return to Nigeria this week to mark the country’s 66th Independence Anniversary and attend the Lagos premiere of a movie commemorating the late MKO Abiola, whom he described as “the martyr of the democracy we enjoy today.”
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