Former Vice-President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has criticised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for embarking on a three-week vacation in Europe while Nigeria grapples with economic hardship and insecurity.

Tinubu is currently en route to Europe for the three-week trip as part of his annual leave.

Sunday Dare, a presidential aide, had described the vacation as well deserved, saying the President had worked hard and needed time to “refuel.”

Atiku, however, faulted the timing of the President’s trip in a statement posted on his social media handles on Sunday.

The former vice-president argued that while Nigeria might not be facing a constitutional vacuum, the country was experiencing what he described as a disturbing vacuum of political leadership.

“Nigeria may not be facing a constitutional vacuum today, but there is a disturbing vacuum of political leadership.”

Atiku said his own travels abroad should not be compared with those of a sitting president, whose responsibility, according to him, requires being available during periods of national difficulty.

“I have travelled, lived and spent time abroad, and I have never pretended otherwise. But there is a fundamental difference between the travels of a private citizen and the responsibility of the sitting President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

He listed rising petrol prices, food shortages, high transport costs and insecurity among the challenges facing Nigerians, arguing that the President’s decision to spend three weeks abroad was ill-timed.

“Consider what Bola Tinubu is leaving behind. Petrol priced beyond the reach of ordinary people. Families rationing food. Transport fares that have turned a journey to one’s own village into a luxury. Insecurity that buries Nigerians week after week. And in the middle of all this, President Tinubu has packed his bags for three weeks in Europe.”

Atiku said the situation was even more difficult to understand because Vice-President Kashim Shettima is also currently outside the country on official duty, attending the 21st Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union (AU) in Luanda, Angola.

He argued that leadership required more than occupying public office, stressing the importance of being available when the country faced serious challenges.

“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 illustrated his argument with a family analogy, saying a leader should remain present when those under his care are facing a crisis.

“A father may travel when all is well. But when his roof is burning and his family is trapped inside, he does not pick up his suitcase and head for the airport.

“That is the issue here. It is not that a President must never rest or travel. It is that Nigeria is burning, and the President has chosen a boarding pass over the fire extinguisher.”

The ADC candidate further criticised the administration over the economic hardship faced by Nigerians.

“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.”

Atiku argued that government could not effectively address the challenges facing citizens without understanding the impact of its policies on their daily lives.

“A government that cannot feel the pain it inflicts will never summon the will to end it. Tinubu made Nigeria expensive. I will make Nigeria affordable again.”