Former Vice President and 2027 presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, has questioned President Bola Tinubu’s prolonged vacation abroad, saying the country cannot be governed by on autopilot as Mr Tinubu extended his working vacation. 

“Who is in Charge of Nigeria?,” Mr Abubakar asked in a statement on Monday. “Twenty-one days have come and gone since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu left Nigeria on what the Presidency described as a three-week annual vacation. Today, Nigerians are entitled to ask a very simple constitutional question: Who is in charge of Nigeria?”

Citing section 145 of the Constitution, the former vice president said it provides that whenever the President proceeds on vacation, he shall transmit a written declaration to the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of Representatives, whereupon the vice president performs the functions of president as acting president.

“And where the President fails to transmit that declaration within 21 days, the Constitution provides a further safeguard: the National Assembly shall, by a simple majority of each House, mandate the Vice President to perform the functions of President as Acting President.

“President Tinubu left Nigeria on 30 August. The Presidency publicly announced a three-week vacation. Yet, to date, Nigerians have not been shown any constitutional letter transmitting presidential authority to Vice President Kashim Shettima,” he added.

According to Mr Abubakar, the president’s prolonged stay abroad is made even more disturbing by the fact that Vice President Shettima is himself presently in New York representing Nigeria at the United Nations General Assembly — the third consecutive UN General Assembly at which President Tinubu has delegated Nigeria’s representation to his deputy.

Lamenting the situation, Mr Abubakar noted, “So again: who is exercising presidential authority in Nigeria today, and under what constitutional instrument? Nigeria cannot be governed by assumptions. 

“It cannot be governed by presidential social-media posts from Europe. It cannot be governed by photographs from private dinners at the Élysée Palace. It cannot be governed on autopilot.”

The ADC chieftain further condemned the killing of detained miners in Nigeria, lamenting the hardship across the country.

“While President Tinubu has been abroad, 37 Nigerians died in NSCDC custody in Minna, an incident grave enough to trigger investigations, suspensions and demands for independent scrutiny.

“At the same time, petrol is selling for as much as ₦1,500 per litre in parts of the country, worsening transportation costs and squeezing families already struggling with the cost of food, electricity, rent and other necessities,” he stated. 

Mr Abubakar challenged the presidency to tell Nigerians immediately whether Mr Tinubu transmitted the declaration contemplated by Section 145(1) before leaving the country.

“Nigeria is bigger than any President. At a time of severe economic hardship, rising energy costs, security challenges and the shocking deaths of citizens in government custody, the country deserves visible, accountable and constitutionally grounded leadership,” he added.

On Monday, presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga, said Mr Tinubu extended his working vacation abroad by a few days. 

Mr Onanuga added that the president would return to the country at the weekend. 

“Since he began the vacation, President Tinubu has continued to keep in touch with home, directing the affairs of the nation, like ordering an independent panel to investigate the death of 37 illegal miners in Minna, following their detention by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, among other things”, he said.