A support group backing President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid, the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement 2027, has criticised former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over his comments on the President’s three-week European vacation.
The group, in a statement issued in Kaduna on Sunday by its National Coordinator, Sunday Asuku, said Tinubu’s absence from Nigeria did not amount to a leadership vacuum, urging Atiku to focus on presenting his political agenda ahead of the 2027 election.
Atiku, the African Democratic Congress presidential candidate, had criticised Tinubu’s vacation amid economic hardship and insecurity in the country.
Although Atiku acknowledged that there was no constitutional vacuum, he described the situation as a “disturbing vacuum of political leadership.”
Tinubu departed Abuja on Sunday for Europe for his annual leave, with London, United Kingdom, as his first destination.
His Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, had announced the trip, saying the President would return after the vacation to participate in the “hectic campaign” for the January 2027 general election.
But the support group dismissed Atiku’s criticism as an attempt to turn the President’s annual leave into a political controversy.
It said, “Presidents and world leaders go on vacation. A vacation does not mean a country has been abandoned.
“Nigeria has functioning institutions and officials responsible for ensuring that government continues to run.”
The group also challenged Atiku to explain what he would do differently if elected President, given his repeated presidential bids.
“After contesting for the presidency repeatedly since 1993, Atiku should be telling Nigerians what he intends to do differently, rather than spending his time attacking President Tinubu,” it said.
The movement further accused Atiku of changing his position on fuel subsidy removal.
It recalled that Atiku campaigned in the 2023 presidential election on a promise to remove the subsidy but had recently advocated its restoration.
“In 2023, he told Nigerians he would remove fuel subsidy. Today, he is talking about bringing it back,” the group said.
The movement urged Atiku to explain whether his position represented a genuine policy change or an attempt to exploit Nigerians’ economic difficulties for political advantage.
It also urged the former Vice President to take his campaign to Nigerians and explain his plans for tackling insecurity, unemployment and economic challenges.
“INEC has rolled out the timetable. Atiku should go out and campaign and tell Nigerians what he has for them,” the group said.
It maintained that Nigerians should judge Tinubu on his policies and performance rather than political rhetoric.
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