TD Former Vice President and 2027 presidential hopeful, Atiku Abubakar, has launched a fresh attack on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, accusing him of failing to demonstrate the political leadership Nigerians need amid worsening economic hardship and insecurity.
Atiku, in a statement, said Nigeria might not be experiencing a constitutional vacuum, but was facing what he described as a “disturbing vacuum of political leadership.”
He criticised Tinubu over his reported three-week trip to Europe.
He argued that the President’s absence was difficult to justify at a time when Nigerians were struggling with high living costs, expensive petrol, rising transport fares and insecurity.
“Leadership is not merely the constitutional right to occupy an office; it is the judgment to know when your country needs you at home,” Atiku said.
He contrasted the President’s travels with the circumstances confronting ordinary Nigerians.
He said that families were being forced to ration food while transportation costs had made even journeys to their hometowns increasingly unaffordable.
Atiku also pointed out that Vice President Kashim Shettima was reportedly abroad on official duties.
He argued that the circumstances made Tinubu’s decision to spend an extended period outside the country even more difficult to understand.
Using a metaphorical comparison, the former vice president said a father would not leave home with a suitcase when his family’s house was burning.
“Nigeria is burning, and the President has chosen a boarding pass over the fire extinguisher,” he said.
Atiku further accused the Tinubu administration of presiding over an economy in which millions of Nigerians were struggling to afford basic necessities.
“Millions of Nigerians are being grounded by hardship while their President is airborne. The people can barely afford to move, but the President keeps moving,” he stated.
He argued that a government disconnected from the economic realities of citizens would struggle to develop the political will required to address their problems.
The criticism comes amid an intensifying political debate over how to reduce the cost of living, particularly fuel and transportation costs.
Recent discussions between the Federal Government and state governors have focused on using cheaper fuel, compressed natural gas (CNG) and electric vehicles to reduce transport fares nationwide.
Atiku, however, maintained that the Tinubu administration had made life more expensive for Nigerians and presented himself as the alternative capable of reversing the trend.
Concluding his statement, he declared:
“Tinubu made Nigeria expensive. I will make Nigeria affordable again.”
Atiku’s latest remarks are likely to further sharpen the political contest ahead of the 2027 general elections, as opposition figures increasingly focus their attacks on the Tinubu administration’s economic policies and their impact on household purchasing power.
