President Bola Tinubu is set to return to Nigeria today following a working visit to France, according to the Presidency.
The President’s spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, announced this on Monday via a post on his X (formerly Twitter) account.
Tinubu departed Nigeria on April 2, 2025, for Paris on a brief working retreat.
The Presidency stated that during his time in France, he reviewed ongoing reforms and conducted strategic planning in preparation for his administration’s second anniversary.
The trip, however, drew criticism from opposition figures who questioned his absence amid escalating insecurity in Nigeria, particularly in Benue and Plateau states, where numerous lives have been lost in attacks on communities.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar called on Tinubu to cut short his stay in France and address the security crisis in the country.
Atiku criticized the President’s extended absence, citing the urgent need to respond to the wave of violence affecting several parts of Nigeria.
“While Tinubu dines under chandeliers in the land of good governance, the country he governs is spiraling into chaos. Plateau has turned into a killing field — over 100 lives lost in relentless attacks,” his spokesman, Paul Ibe, said in a statement on April 17.
Similarly, a former presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 general elections, Mr Peter Obi, urged Tinubu to suspend his France trip and urgently return to Nigeria to address the deteriorating security situation, particularly in Plateau and Benue states.
He also said the primary duty of any government is securing the lives and property of its citizens, and one wondered why the type of retreat was going on in another country where peace had been secured by their leaders, “while blood continues to flow in our country”.
“I am compelled at this time in our lives as a nation to call on our retreating President’s attention to the security challenges at home, which entail that he immediately suspend his ongoing retreat in a foreign land and come home to address the overwhelming security situation across the country.”
“In the two weeks you have been away, over 150 Nigerians have lost their lives to insecurity across Nigeria, especially in Plateau and Zamfara states.
“I therefore urge Mr President to quickly suspend whatever he is doing in France and rush home to take responsibility by addressing these disturbing issues. That is the new Nigeria the nation seeks,” he said.
But the Presidency noted that the Tinubu had maintained constant communication with key government officials, overseeing critical national matters, including directives to security chiefs to address emerging threats in some parts of the country.