Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s latest go to to Benue State, describing it as a “political spectacle” reasonably than a real try and confront the state’s deepening safety disaster or console victims of violent assaults.
In an unique interview with Vanguard on Thursday, Atiku’s Media Adviser, Paul Ibe, lambasted the Tinubu administration for what he referred to as a performance-driven strategy to governance, accusing it of prioritising optics over efficient motion.
“It’s commendable when a frontrunner empathises with the folks—providing a shoulder to lean on is a mark of true management,” Ibe stated. “However the go to was marred by political theatrics. Kids have been lined up on the freeway, waving on the president within the rain; subjecting them to such circumstances was pointless.”
He added that whereas greater than 200 lives have been misplaced in latest assaults throughout Benue communities, no arrests have been made, elevating severe issues in regards to the capability and can of the federal government to safe residents.
“The identical safety businesses that failed to stop or examine this tragedy have been fast to tear fuel peaceable protesters demanding security. That is unacceptable,” Ibe stated.
‘Rubbish In, Rubbish Out’
Atiku’s camp additionally blasted what it described because the administration’s “elementary misdiagnosis” of the safety challenges, attributing ongoing failures to misplaced priorities and the politicisation of key nationwide roles.
“If you misdiagnose an issue, the answer will inevitably be flawed—rubbish in, rubbish out,” Ibe remarked.
“Take a look at the people heading the safety portfolios: they’re politicians, not specialists. They’re targeted on political beneficial properties reasonably than nationwide safety.”
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He stated the disaster of governance extends past safety, citing a scarcity of inclusiveness as a serious contributor to rising instability throughout the nation.
“Inclusiveness is a software for nationwide unity. If you dismiss or alienate areas, religions, or ethnic {groups}, chaos is inevitable,” he stated.
Focus Already on 2027
Ibe additional accused President Tinubu’s crew of being preoccupied with the 2027 normal elections, as a substitute of specializing in the pressing {economic} and safety points Nigerians face.
“The federal government’s obsession with 2027 has come on the expense of governance. Persons are dying, inflation is hovering, but the main target is on energy retention,” he stated.
President Tinubu had visited Benue earlier this week following the ugly Yelewata bloodbath, the place coordinated assaults by suspected herders left dozens lifeless. Whereas the go to included stops at hospitals and IDP camps, critics argue that the optics overshadowed the substance.
To date, the presidency has not formally responded to Atiku’s remarks, although sources inside the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) describe the opposition chief’s feedback as “disingenuous and politically motivated.”
The disagreement underscores the rising pressure between the nation’s two main political camps, as insecurity, {economic} pressure, and public discontent proceed to dominate Nigeria’s nationwide discourse.
