Former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, has criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over his handling of the recent visit to Plateau State.
In a statement on Thursday by Atiku’s spokesperson, Phrank
Shaibu, the former VP described Tinubu’s visit as yet another troubling
indication of a pattern of detachment from the suffering of Nigerians.
Recall that the president on Thursday cancelled his planned
visit to Ogun State and instead traveled to Plateau following the Palm Sunday
killings in the state.
During the visit, Tinubu said he felt the pain of residents
of Plateau and reassured them of measures to end terrorism in the country.
Reacting, Atiku said the events in Plateau State have once
again exposed a disturbing and unacceptable approach to national tragedy.
“It is both shocking and deeply insensitive that several
days after the gruesome killings of innocent citizens, the president’s
so-called ‘on-the-spot assessment’ was reduced to a brief stop at the foot of
his aircraft, never extending beyond the airport, never reaching the grieving
communities, and never touching the pain of the victims. Even more troubling is
the impression that this fleeting visit was hurriedly curtailed to allow the
president to proceed to Lagos for the Easter holidays, a decision that reflects
a deeply troubling prioritization in the face of national grief.
“While families continue to mourn those slaughtered on Palm
Sunday, the President chose to convert what ought to have been a solemn visit
into a political spectacle, meeting party loyalists in Jos under the thin guise
of official engagement. This is not leadership; it is indifference dressed as
protocol.
“This approach mirrors his earlier conduct in Benue State in
June 2025, when a condolence visit over a deadly attack conspicuously avoided
the epicenter in Yelwata, only to devolve into a political rally. The
repetition of this pattern is no longer accidental; it is now a consistent and
troubling habit.
“In Plateau, the president neither visited the bereaved
families nor the injured receiving treatment in hospitals. He offered no
concrete policy direction, no decisive security intervention, and no
reassurance that such horrors would not recur. Instead, he staged a
meet-and-greet within the confines of the airport, surrounded by politicians,
traditional rulers, and party operatives, far removed from the anguish of the
people.
“Even more disturbing is the government’s decision to
transport grieving citizens from distant parts of Jos Municipal to the airport
in Heipang near Barkin Ladi, merely to stage an appearance before the
President. At a time when families are in deep mourning, such actions reduce
genuine human tragedy to a choreographed spectacle—prioritizing optics over
empathy and dignity. This is not only inappropriate; it is shameful.
“This conduct raises serious questions about the president’s
sincerity and capacity to confront the escalating insecurity ravaging the
nation. A leader who cannot stand with his people in their darkest hour cannot
convincingly claim to be fighting for their safety.
“Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar reiterates that
Nigerians are not asking for ceremonial appearances or fleeting sympathy
visits. What they demand and deserve is a government that can secure lives and
property. They do not need to see the President’s face; they need to feel the
impact of his leadership.
“Until this administration moves beyond optics and embraces
decisive, people-centered action, such visits will remain hollow exercises,
detached from the very citizens they are meant to comfort,” he stated.
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