Tinubu’s France Trip and Attendant Transparency Issues

President Bola Tinubu will on Monday commence an indefinite vacation to France, seven months after he visited the country on a “private visit”.

Tinubu’s spokesman, Chief Ajuri Ngelale, who made the announcement in a two-paragraph statement on Sunday, did not disclose when the president is expected back in the country.

Ngelale said: “President Bola Tinubu will embark on a trip to France on Monday, August 19, departing from Abuja, the nation’s capital.

“The President will return to the country after his brief work stay in France” , he said.

The President’s recurring foreign trips have however posed some concern to Nigerians, with some faulting their frequency and timing.

Mr Franklin Udemba, a public affairs commentator, said that while the President is expected to make foreign trips in line with the demands of his office, the “exact reasons for such trips should be made public”.

He added that the expected date of return should also be communicated rather than so that Nigerians are not left in the dark, especially as the country only just came out of massive nationwide protests.

According to him, transparency and accountability remain hallmarks of a government devoid of corrupt tendencies.

C- Advocate recalls that the Presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 General Elections, Mr Peter Obi, had, in June 2023, criticized President Tinubu for not releasing details of his trips.

Obi who described Tinubu as a “national asset”, said his trips are funded by taxpayers, hence the need to make his movements public knowledge.

As the president departs for France, the date of his expected return is uncertain as it has not been disclosed by the presidency.

C- Advocate therefore urges the President Bola Tinubu-led government to disclose details of the President’s trips and other activities to boost Nigerians’ confidence in his government

This pertinent disclosure will also further reassure Nigerians of the President’s commitment to transparency and accountability in governance as well as the fight against corruption.

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