Senate President Godswill Akpabio has said there is no vacancy in Aso Rock, insisting that President Bola Tinubu remains in charge of Nigeria despite his absence from the country.
Akpabio spoke on Tuesday in Akwa Ibom State while inaugurating road projects executed by Governor Umo Eno.
The Senate president said Tinubu’s absence should not be interpreted as a transfer of power, stressing that he is not the acting president.
“I am not the acting president, because the president is still in power. The president is on a working leave. So, there’s no absence in Aso Rock,” he said.
Akpabio said Tinubu continued to perform his responsibilities while abroad, arguing that modern technology allows the president to issue directives and conduct government business remotely.
“What he cannot do here, he is doing abroad. The world has become a global village; you can give instructions from the internet about anything, so why are people complaining?” he stated.
He also cited Tinubu’s recent engagement with French President Emmanuel Macron, saying the president had been discussing bilateral matters while abroad.
“The other day, he was with President Macron on a state visit, discussing bilateral to bring things back to Nigeria,” Akpabio said.
The Senate president also addressed Tinubu’s absence from the United Nations General Assembly, noting that Vice-President Kashim Shettima represented Nigeria at the gathering.
“And then, because he could not make it to UNGA, the United Nations General Assembly, his vice-president went,” he said.
Akpabio maintained that there was no vacancy in the presidency, adding that, as chairman of the National Assembly, he was the appropriate authority to speak on the matter.
“There’s no vacancy; people who are talking are just talking. I’m the only person as chairman of national assembly that can speak the voice of national assembly and say there is vacancy and there will be vacancy,” he said.
“Right now, there is no vacancy. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is still in power and is still running the affairs of Nigeria.”
He also dismissed concerns over Tinubu’s absence, comparing those questioning the situation to people who complain unnecessarily.
“The people who are complaining are like people who are drinking water and say give me toothpick, the water is all for my teeth. They don’t know what to say,” Akpabio added.
Akpabio’s comments come amid reactions to the simultaneous absence of Tinubu and Shettima from Nigeria, with Tinubu in France while the vice-president attended the UNGA in New York.
The situation has also drawn criticism from opposition figures over Tinubu’s decision to miss the UNGA for the third consecutive year.
Boluwatife Enome
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