Ex-VP spokesman takes swipe at Tinubu, Shettima being abroad simultaneously
Former spokesman of ex Vice-PresidentYemi Osinbajo, Laolu Akande, has taken a swipe at the idea of both President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima leaving the country for foreign trips simultaneously,saying it is not ideal.
This is even as the presidency says “there is no leadership vacuum in the country, adding that “it is important to note that the President and Vice President are fully engaged with the nation’s affairs, even while they are away.”
But Akande, who spoke on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Thursday, said “it is important for one of them to be on the ground because the work of governance requires a lot of hand-holding,” he said.
“In my view, we still have a very serious problem of sustained trust in the relationship between the President and the Vice President over time,” he added.
While Tinubu departed Nigeria on October 2, 2024, for a two-week work leave in the United Kingdom, Shettima left Abuja on Wednesday for Sweden on a two-day visit to represent Nigeria in bilateral engagements with the Scandinavian nation.
In a statement on Wednesday, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga said “ President Tinubu left the country on 3 October and is on a two-week working vacation. During this time, he has been busy answering phones and issuing directives on matters of state. He will soon return to the country before the vacation officially expires.
“The vice president departed the country Wednesday for Sweden on an official visit, working for Nigeria.
“All state organs are functioning as usual. The Senate President, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Ministers, and Service Chiefs are all in their respective positions, ensuring the smooth operation of the government.
“We had a similar situation in 2022 when former President Buhari and former Vice President Osinbajo were found to be simultaneously out of the country. President Buhari attended UNGA 77, while Osinbajo participated in the burial of Queen Elizabeth ll.
“ We have also experienced it during this administration. Between late April and early May this year, while President Tinubu was in London, after visiting the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia, where he attended the World Economic Forum, Vice President Shettima left Nigeria, first of all for Nairobi to attend the International Development Association (IDA21) Heads of State Summit. After returning, he left for Dallas, Texas, to attend the US-Africa Business Summit organised by the Corporate Council on Africa. President Tinubu returned home on 8 May. During this time, the government’s machinery did not halt.
“ The Constitution, a testament to our adaptability in the virtual age, does not explicitly require the physical presence of either the president or the vice president in the country at all times to fulfil his duties.
However, Akande said, “The ideal thing is for us not to have a situation where both the president and the vice president are not in town, that’s the ideal situation.
I remember that during the eight years I served, that happened only once during the burial of the Queen (of England) which also fell at the same time as the UNGA and I knew how the president and the vice president were checking on each other to ensure that somebody gets back.
“So, in eight years, they managed to ensure that for the most part, one person is always on the ground. I know quite a few times when the vice president had to just wrap up foreign trips because something happened and the president will have to travel.”
