Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has voiced deep concern about the escalating insecurity under President Bola Tinubu’s leadership.
Having suffered defeat against Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election, Atiku urged the current President to step down if he fails to effectively address the pressing security challenges.
Expressing his worries, Atiku accused President Tinubu of neglecting the severity of the security crisis, emphasising the nation’s struggle with increasing threats while the leader seems indifferent. The former vice president painted a grim picture of a nation immersed in insecurity and called for decisive action to protect the lives and well-being of citizens.
“If the shoes are too big for Emilokan, he should step aside. Nigeria does not need another Tourist-in-Chief,” the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain added. “The country needs 24/7 leadership to confront the pervasive insecurity and collapsing economy,” he said in a post on his X handle on Tuesday, recalling the various kidnapping episodes in several parts of Nigeria.
Tinubu is seemingly playing the fiddle while Nigeria grapples with a rising tide of insecurity. The image of the Commander-in-Chief on a purported private visit becomes more troubling as kidnappers take the lives of a nursing mother and grandmother in Abuja over a N90m ransom, along with two monarchs in Ekiti, highlighting the urgent need for decisive action.
“Tinubu is playing fiddle while Nigeria is drowning in the ocean of insecurity,” Atiku wrote.
“To imagine that the Commander-in-Chief is on a so-called private visit while kidnappers kill a nursing mother and grandmother in Abuja for failing to pay N90m ransom and two monarchs in Ekiti, among other regular tragedies besetting Nigerians.”
President Tinubu assumed office last year with a commitment to addressing Nigeria’s security challenges, encompassing jihadist threats in the North East, criminal militias in the North West, and the surge in intercommunal violence in central states.
However, critics argue that the kidnapping crisis, a significant national concern, has escalated beyond control. The president, acknowledging the severity of the issue, outlined plans to tackle the root causes of violence through an emphasis on education.
Experts point to a combination of impunity, inadequate security measures, and a lack of comprehensive government presence as factors contributing to the persistent violence, allowing it to fester and intensify across the nation.
