THE SPECIAL adviser on information and strategy, to President Bola Tinubu, Bayo Onanuga, has declared that the President can go wherever he likes as he is still observing his two weeks’ leave.
The declaration followed criticism trailing Tinubu’s trip from the United Kingdom to France.
Onanuga in a post on his X handle on Friday evening said Tinubu was on leave and could travel wherever he chose.
“He is not restricted to the UK. It is his private time. He can go to anywhere he so desires. He is still observing his leave,” Onanuga tweeted.
The ICIR reported that Tinubu will depart Abuja on Wednesday, October 2, for the United Kingdom to begin a two-week vacation as part of his yearly leave.
According to a statement from presidential aide, Onanuga, Tinubu’s trip to the UK is not only for rest but also a ‘working vacation,’ which he said was aimed at reflecting on the economic reforms undertaken by his administration.
But in a post on X on Friday, October 11, The Senior special assistant on political and other matters to the president, Ibrahim Masari, confirmed on his verified X handle, @KabirIbrah64, that Tinubu was heading to Paris, France from the UK.
“Today, I had the honour of visiting President Asiwaju Bola Tinubu GCFR at his private residence in the United Kingdom, where we engaged in productive discussions. We then departed for Paris, France, for another important engagement,” the presidential aide posted. Masari did not however reveal details of the Paris engagement.
The President’s leave comes at a critical time when Nigeria is grappling with economic challenges, due to policy changes, including the removal of fuel subsidies and reforms in the foreign exchange market.
The ICIR reported that Tinubu stopped fuel subsidies on the day he took over power on May 29, 2023, and subsequently devalued the local currency – the naira – thus causing a spiral hike in food and commodity prices.
While the president admitted the economic hardship his policies and reforms had caused, he recently noted that the reforms were beginning to yield positive results.
In his October 1st, Independence Day address, Tinubu said that his administration had secured over $30 billion in foreign direct investments into the nation since he took over power.
However, The ICIR reports that his claims conflict with the rising inflation and a hike in the cost of living that have pushed many citizens into despair.
Many Nigerians have also claimed that these strides have not translated into a visible improvement in their lives, stressing that the hardships had rather worsened.
The ICIR reported that some Nigerians trooped to the streets of Lagos and Abuja, to protest what they described as “the hardships, privations, hunger, unemployment, insecurity, and poverty” that the Tinubu administration foisted on the nation.
The October 1 protest followed a similar demonstration in August.
A reporter with the ICIR
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