President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima have departed Nigeria on separate international trips, leaving a vacuum in the country’s top leadership.
President Tinubu left Nigeria on Wednesday for a two-week “working leave” in France. At the same time, Vice President Shettima departed Abuja on Thursday for Dakar, Senegal, to represent Nigeria at the country’s 65th Independence Anniversary celebrations.
A statement released by Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications (Office of the Vice President), confirmed that Shettima was in Senegal at the invitation of President Bassirou Diomaye Faye. Senegal celebrates its Independence Day annually on April 4, marking its liberation from French colonial rule in 1960.
While the nature of President Tinubu’s “working leave” in France remains unclear, his absence has drawn attention as both the President and Vice President are now out of the country simultaneously.
The timing of both leaders’ departures has sparked discussions about governance continuity in their absence. Also, the frequent foreign trips by President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima have drawn sharp criticism from opposition parties, who described the travels as wasteful and insensitive to Nigeria’s current economic struggles.
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