The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has questioned the simultaneous absence of President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima from Nigeria, asking who is constitutionally exercising presidential authority while both leaders are abroad.
NEWSNGR reports that the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, raised the issue during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, arguing that the situation had raised questions about the operation of Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution.
Tinubu is currently in France on an extended working vacation, while Shettima is in New York representing Nigeria at the 81st United Nations General Assembly.
The Presidency said on Monday that Tinubu would return to Nigeria at the weekend and that he had continued directing affairs of government while abroad.
Abdullahi challenged the Federal Government’s position that Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, would continue representing the President at official functions while Tinubu and Shettima are abroad.
He questioned whether the SGF had any constitutional authority to exercise the President’s powers.
“The Secretary to the Federal Government, is he now the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria? Were Nigeria to be invaded by a foreign army today, who is on the ground to direct the Nigerian Army appropriately? Who has the authority of the Commander-in-Chief?” he asked.
Abdullahi argued that Section 145 provides a procedure for transferring presidential functions to the Vice President when the President is on vacation or otherwise unable to perform the functions of his office.
He questioned whether the Constitution contemplated a situation in which a President could remain abroad for an extended period while describing the absence as a working vacation.
Abdullahi asked, “Did it in any way recognise the possibility of a working vacation, that the Nigerian President can relocate to another country?
“Because if that absurdity were to be contemplated, it means that it did not matter whether the President of Nigeria spent an entire year in another country, as long as he can claim that it’s a working vacation.”
The ADC spokesman also criticised the National Assembly for not intervening, suggesting lawmakers should reconvene to consider what he described as a constitutional issue.
“So, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, who was merely an appointee of the President, is the one in charge of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. So, how did we get to this point?”
“The situation we are in is so serious that the Nigerian Senate or the Nigerian National Assembly should reconvene in an emergency to address this issue,” he added.
Abdullahi compared the situation with the controversy surrounding the prolonged absence of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, which eventually led to the constitutional clarification known as the “Doctrine of Necessity” during his illness.
He said the present situation was different because both the President and Vice President were outside Nigeria.
“Nobody envisaged that anybody would drag this country down to this ridiculous absurdity that the President of Nigeria will be out of the country on a working vacation in the capital of France, while the Vice President represents him in another country,” he said.
The ADC official also responded to questions about whether there could be undisclosed medical, family or other reasons for Tinubu’s continued stay abroad.
He said he was not speculating about the President’s circumstances but was relying on publicly available information.
He said, “If it is medical, let them tell us. I don’t know him, Seun. I can only stick to the facts available to me.”
Abdullahi said the facts available to him were that Tinubu was abroad, Shettima was also outside the country, and the Presidency had announced that Akume would continue to represent the President at official engagements.
The ADC spokesman said the party was examining legal options over the constitutional implications of the President’s absence.
“We are looking at it. Because there is a potential for impeachment in this. When you violate the Constitution of Nigeria without consequences, then what else is left?” he said.
