President Bola Ahmed Tinubu arrived in Abuja on Monday, April 21, 2025, concluding a 19-day working visit to France and the United Kingdom. The trip, which began on April 2, included strategic meetings to assess his administration’s mid-term performance, review ongoing reforms, and plan for Nigeria’s second-year governance milestones.
Key Details of the Visit
Purpose: Tinubu focused on evaluating policy implementations and engaging in high-level strategic sessions, maintaining remote governance through constant communication with officials.
Security Directives: Despite his absence, the President issued orders to security chiefs to address escalating violence in Plateau, Benue, and Borno states, where recent attacks claimed over 150 lives.
Criticism: Opposition leaders, including Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, condemned Tinubu’s prolonged stay abroad amid rising insecurity, urging immediate action to quell the crisis.
Presidency’s Rebuttal
The Presidency, through spokesperson Bayo Onanuga, defended Tinubu’s absence, stating governance continued “without interruption” and emphasizing the temporary nature of the trip. Tinubu’s return aligns with the initially communicated two-week timeframe, extended slightly due to logistical adjustments.
The visit underscores Tinubu’s dual focus on international engagement and domestic governance, even as security challenges dominate national discourse ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 elections.
