Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has criticised President Bola Tinubu for embarking on a three-week vacation abroad amid the economic and security challenges confronting Nigeria.

The Presidency had announced that Tinubu departed Abuja on Sunday for Europe as part of his annual leave.

Reacting in a post on his X handle, Atiku described the President’s absence, coming at a time when Vice President Kashim Shettima is also outside the country, as a “disturbing vacuum of political leadership.”

Atiku said the issue was not whether a president was entitled to rest or travel, but whether the timing of such a trip was appropriate given the challenges facing Nigerians.

He pointed to high petrol prices, food insecurity, rising transport fares and worsening insecurity, arguing that the President should be focused on addressing the difficulties confronting citizens.

“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,” Atiku wrote.

The ADC candidate likened Tinubu’s decision to travel at this time to a father abandoning his family while their home is on fire.

“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,” he said.

Atiku also questioned the President’s decision to travel while Shettima is abroad on official duties.

“Leadership is not merely the constitutional right to occupy an office; it is the judgment to know when your country needs you at home,” he stated.

He further argued that millions of Nigerians were struggling with economic hardship while the President remained outside the country.

“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 said.

He accused the Tinubu administration of making the country increasingly expensive and pledged to make Nigeria more affordable if elected president.

The Presidency, however, said Tinubu is expected to return to Nigeria after the working vacation and participate in campaign activities ahead of the 2027 general elections.