Nigeria’s constitution sets a clear 21-day limit before a president on vacation must formally transfer power. Tinubu left the country on August 30 and crossed that threshold days ago. The presidency has yet to confirm whether the required written declaration was ever transmitted. That unanswered question is the one Senate President Godswill Akpabio did not address on Tuesday.
Akpabio, speaking at a road commissioning event in Akwa Ibom State, dismissed concerns over Tinubu’s continued absence from the country, insisting that no leadership vacuum exists and that the president remains in charge of the government. The event was organized to mark projects delivered under Governor Umo Eno.
“I am the Senate President, and I am not the acting President of Nigeria, because President Tinubu is still in power,” Akpabio said. “He is on a working leave, and there is no absence in Aso Rock. The world is a global village, and one can give instructions over the internet. So, why are people complaining?”
His comments came as public debate sharpened over the simultaneous absence of both Tinubu and Vice-President Kashim Shettima. Tinubu, who left Nigeria on August 30 for a working vacation, extended his stay in Europe by a few days and is expected back at the weekend, according to the Presidency. Shettima is in New York for the 81st United Nations General Assembly.
Section 145 of the Constitution requires the President, when proceeding on vacation for a period of up to 21 days, to transmit a written declaration to the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, after which the Vice-President performs the functions of Acting President. No such declaration has been publicly confirmed.
The African Democratic Congress challenged the Federal Government’s position that Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, would continue representing the President at official functions during the dual absence. The party questioned whether the SGF held any constitutional authority to exercise presidential powers.
“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,” the ADC said. “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.”
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, the ADC’s presidential candidate for the 2027 election, also questioned whether Tinubu transmitted the required declaration before leaving the country, asking the Presidency to confirm whether a letter was sent to the Senate President and the Speaker of the House, and demanding the National Assembly explain why Section 145 was not activated.
To counter the criticism, Akpabio cited recent diplomatic activity as evidence of Tinubu’s continued engagement, pointing to communications between the president and French President Emmanuel Macron. The Presidency offered the same example on Monday when justifying the extended stay.
The presidency has rejected the suggestion that Tinubu’s absence created a leadership vacuum. His Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said Tinubu remained in touch with developments in Nigeria and continued to direct government affairs from abroad.
Akpabio went further, comparing critics to people who, in his words, “are drinking water and say, ‘Give me a toothpick; the water is all for my teeth.'” They don’t know what to say,” he said. The remark drew attention on social media hours after he spoke.
Former Vice-President Atiku linked the question of constitutional authority to specific national challenges, including the reported deaths of 37 Nigerians in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps in Minna, Niger State, and rising petrol prices, which he said had reached ₦1,500 per liter in parts of the country.
The ADC disputed the government’s position that labeling the trip a “working vacation” resolved the constitutional question and said the National Assembly should reconvene to address the situation, though it alleged lawmakers would not do so because of their closeness to the Tinubu administration.
Calls for Tinubu to formally transfer power to Shettima are centered on his prolonged absence from Nigeria and concerns about continuity in the administration of government. The presidency has yet to announce a specific date for Tinubu’s return.
The constitutional question Akpabio dismissed on Tuesday, whether a declaration under Section 145 was transmitted at all, remains the one question neither the Presidency nor the Senate President has directly and publicly answered since the Tinubu absence began 25 days ago.
