Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has condemned President Bola Tinubu’s handling of Nigeria’s security crisis, following fresh killings in Benue State.
In a statement on Saturday, Atiku condemned the administration’s “disturbing indifference” to the rising wave of insecurity across the country and called out the president for continuing his stay in Europe amid ongoing national trauma.
“The Tinubu administration has proven, time and again, to be utterly incapable, wholly incompetent, and completely devoid of any coherent ideas for tackling Nigeria’s deepening security crisis,” Atiku said, adding that this was no longer just his personal view, but “a growing consensus among political opposition leaders, respected security experts, and even members within the ruling party who, though too timid to speak publicly, confess this uncomfortable truth behind closed doors.”
His comments come in the wake of attacks in the Logo and Gbagir communities of Ukum Local Government Area in Benue State, where several people were reportedly killed by suspected armed assailants.
“The blood of innocent Nigerians continues to be spilled with appalling regularity… yet the Tinubu presidency remains disturbingly indifferent, displaying neither urgency nor the basic decency of public empathy,” Atiku stated.
Drawing parallels with international and local examples of responsive leadership, Atiku pointed to U.S. President Barack Obama, South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, and even former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan as leaders who promptly returned from official trips to address crises back home.
“Leadership demands presence,” he said. “In 2016, President Barack Obama cut short an important diplomatic visit to return home after five police officers were killed… In 2019, President Cyril Ramaphosa abandoned a state visit to Egypt to return to South Africa amid an electricity crisis… Even U.S. Senator Ted Cruz… eventually returned and acknowledged his mistake.”
“Yet President Bola Tinubu, incapable of solving Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, chooses instead to gallivant across Europe — governing Nigeria in absentia as if from a holiday perch,” he added. “If he cannot act, the least he can do is show up. If he cannot lead with empathy, he should at least attempt the performance of it.”
Atiku extended his condolences to the people and government of Benue State, saying: “We stand with you in grief and in solidarity.”
He concluded with a broader political warning, stating: “An inept administration may not suddenly discover competence. But we will not stop calling it out. If Tinubu cannot deliver safety and dignity to Nigerians, the very least he can do is pretend to care — regardless of ethnicity, religion, or political affiliation.”
Atiku’s statement adds to mounting pressure on the presidency, coming just days after Labour Party’s Peter Obi also urged the president to return from Europe and take direct charge of Nigeria’s spiraling insecurity.
The presidency, in an earlier statement by Special Adviser Bayo Onanuga, maintained that Tinubu remains fully engaged with national affairs from abroad and is in constant communication with top officials, including security chiefs. The President is expected to return after the Easter holiday.
