Plateau visit: Tinubu only stayed on the plane — Atiku

Former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, has expressed deep concern over the handling of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s recent visit to Plateau State, describing it as yet another troubling indication of a pattern of detachment from the suffering of Nigerians.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had visited Plateau on Thursday to condole the state over the recent killings.

Reacting to the development through a statement signed Thursday evening by Phrank Shaibu, Special Assistant on Public Communication to Atiku Abubakar, said the events in Plateau State have once again exposed a disturbing and unacceptable approach to national tragedy.

According to him, It is both shocking and deeply insensitive that several days after the gruesome killings of innocent citizens, the President’s so-called “on-the-spot assessment” was reduced to a brief stop at the foot of his aircraft, never extending beyond the airport, never reaching the grieving communities, and never touching the pain of the victims. Even more troubling is the impression that this fleeting visit was hurriedly curtailed to allow the President proceed to Lagos for the Easter holidays, a decision that reflects a deeply troubling prioritisation in the face of national grief.

“While families continue to mourn those slaughtered on Palm Sunday, the President chose to convert what ought to have been a solemn visit into a political spectacle, meeting party loyalists in Jos under the thin guise of official engagement. This is not leadership; it is indifference dressed as protocol.

“This approach mirrors his earlier conduct in Benue State in June 2025, when a condolence visit over a deadly attack conspicuously avoided the epicentre in Yelwata, only to devolve into a political rally. The repetition of this pattern is no longer accidental, it is now a consistent and troubling habit.

“In Plateau, the President neither visited the bereaved families nor the injured receiving treatment in hospitals. He offered no concrete policy direction, no decisive security intervention, and no reassurance that such horrors would not recur. Instead, he staged a meet-and-greet within the confines of the airport, surrounded by politicians, traditional rulers, and party operatives—far removed from the anguish of the people.

“Even more disturbing is the government’s decision to transport grieving citizens from distant parts of Jos Municipal to the airport in Heipang near Barkin Ladi, merely to stage an appearance before the President. At a time when families are in deep mourning, such actions reduce genuine human tragedy to a choreographed spectacle—prioritising optics over empathy and dignity. This is not only inappropriate; it is shameful.

“This conduct raises serious questions about the President’s sincerity and capacity to confront the escalating insecurity ravaging the nation. A leader who cannot stand with his people in their darkest hour cannot convincingly claim to be fighting for their safety.”

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar reiterated that Nigerians are not asking for ceremonial appearances or fleeting sympathy visits.

“What they demand and deserve is a government that can secure lives and property. They do not need to see the President’s face; they need to feel the impact of his leadership.

“Until this administration moves beyond optics and embraces decisive, people-centered action, such visits will remain hollow exercises, detached from the very citizens they are meant to comfort.”