President Bola Tinubu, on Sunday, departed Abuja for Europe to begin a three-week holiday as part of his annual leave.
The President, according to a statement by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, on Sunday, will make his first stop in London, United Kingdom.
Tinubu is expected to return home after the working vacation to join the campaign for the January 2027 general election.
Speaking shortly before the President’s departure on Sunday, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Public Communications, Sunday Dare, said the three-week holiday was well deserved following months of intense engagement on state matters.
Dare, who spoke to journalists at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, said, the
President had several months- of being engaged with state matters.
He noted the timing of the leave against the backdrop of the country’s newly launched campaign season, stressing that governance would not pause despite the President’s time away.
The President last proceeded on leave on December 28, 2025, through January 2026.
Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, criticised Tinubu over his three-week vacation in Europe amid worsening economic hardship and insecurity in the country.
Atiku argued that although Nigeria was not facing a constitutional vacuum, the country was experiencing what he described as a “disturbing vacuum of political leadership.”
In a statement released on Sunday on his verified X account, he questioned the timing of Tinubu’s trip against the backdrop of the economic difficulties confronting Nigerians.
Atiku said the President’s decision to travel was particularly difficult to understand because Vice President Kashim Shettima was also outside the country on official duty.
He listed rising petrol prices, food hardship, increased transport fares and persistent insecurity among the challenges facing Nigerians, arguing that the circumstances demanded greater attention from the President.