Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progress (APC), has explained that his “busy and hectic campaign schedule” prohibits him from attending presidential debates, TV and radio interviews. Mr Tinubu urged the APC faithful to communicate the details of his manifesto to Nigerians. 

In a statement by Festus Keyamo, his campaign spokesman, Mr Tinubu explained his absence at the presidential town hall series hosted by ARISE TV in conjunction with the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) at Transcorp Hilton in Abuja on Sunday. 

The former Lagos governor said he had no intention of honouring any of the numerous interview requests he received from TV and radio stations, as it would be unfair to appear “in some networks, whilst ignoring others.”

According to the statement, the APC standard-bearer, who said he realised the importance of speaking directly to Nigerians, stressed he had already organised town hall meetings in Kano, Lagos and intended to interact with agro and commodity groups in Minna, Niger, on Monday.

The presidential hopeful urged APC faithful to engage in grassroots campaigns and educate voters on the contents of his manifesto.

“We urge all our party structures and supporters at the grassroots to continue to organise town hall meetings to educate Nigerians on the Action Plan of our candidate,” the statement noted.

While the presidential town hall series was ongoing, Mr Tinubu was sighted at the birthday party of his associate, retired colonel Sani Bello, some 6.4 km (an eight-minute drive) from the venue. 

Mr Tinubu, in previous public addresses, made slurred and incoherent statements, stirring concerns about his health and mental capacity to manage the country in 2023 and beyond. 

In one of his latest gaffes, he had hailed Kaduna governor Nasir El-Rufai’s creativity “in turning a rotten situation into a bad one.” 

Given the low ratings, Mr Tinubu’s public relations stunts have earned him, his aides have kept him out of public scrutiny.

The APC is gaining notoriety for shunning presidential debates as incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari ignored such debates in the 2015 and 2019 debates.