By Kazeem Waris
The African Democratic Congress, ADC, yesterday questioned who is exercising Nigeria’s presidential powers as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice-President Kashim Shettima remain outside the country.
The opposition party said Tinubu’s absence had exceeded the 21-day period referenced in Section 145 of the Constitution, raising questions about whether the constitutional procedure for transferring presidential functions had been followed.
In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC demanded to know whether Tinubu had transmitted the required written declaration to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives.
“President Tinubu left Nigeria on 30 August and has now been away for more than 21 days. We therefore demand to know whether the required declaration was transmitted by the President. If he did not, we would like to know why the National Assembly has ignored Section 145 of the Constitution,” the party said.
The ADC also rejected the Presidency’s description of Tinubu’s trip as a “working vacation”, arguing that official representation of the President did not amount to the transfer of presidential powers.
The party specifically said Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, could not exercise presidential powers merely by representing Tinubu at official engagements.
“Representing the President at events and ceremonies does not confer constitutional powers. The Secretary to the Government of the Federation is a mere appointee of the President. He may attend events or deliver speeches on the President’s behalf, but he cannot exercise the constitutional powers of the President or Acting President,” it said.
The party said the President’s absence could not be addressed through official representation or remote communication.
“Representation is not governance. Attendance at official functions is not presidential authority. Nigeria cannot be governed through ceremonial proxies, telephone calls and press statements issued from foreign capitals,” the ADC said.
It also faulted the description of Tinubu’s trip as a “working vacation”, saying such a category did not exist under the Constitution.
“There is no constitutional category known as a ‘working vacation’. Presidential authority cannot be transferred by convenience, protocol or press statement. Nigeria is a constitutional democracy, not a private enterprise to be managed remotely from a holiday destination,” the party said.
The ADC said the simultaneous absence of Tinubu and Shettima was particularly troubling as Nigerians continued to grapple with insecurity, unemployment and rising living costs.
The party also criticised Tinubu’s continued stay in France while French President Emmanuel Macron was in New York attending the United Nations General Assembly, UNGA.
“The irony would be amusing if it were not a national disgrace. At a time when world leaders are advancing their countries’ interests at the United Nations General Assembly, Nigeria’s President is holed up in the French capital while his host has left to pursue his own country’s national interest,” it said.
The ADC described the situation as “not merely poor optics” but “a national embarrassment”, arguing that Tinubu should not remain in Paris after Macron had travelled to New York for the UNGA.
The party therefore challenged the Presidency and National Assembly to clarify who currently exercises the constitutional powers of the Nigerian President.
“Who presently exercises the constitutional powers of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and under what provision of the Constitution?” the ADC asked.
