81st UNGA: Presidency speaks on Tinubu’s absence

The Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Foreign Affairs and Protocol, Ademola Osodi, has dismissed suggestions that the President’s decision to miss the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York was connected to strained relations with the United States.

Osodi described the claim as an “old chestnut”, insisting that Tinubu had travelled to the US on previous occasions and had maintained engagements with American institutions and officials.

Speaking during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, the presidential aide said he personally accompanied Tinubu during one of his previous visits to the United Nations and witnessed the President’s activities in New York.

“I was with the President when he went to the United Nations; physically I was there, you saw it on social media. He went to the stock exchange, he rang the bell, he had meetings on the side,” Osodi said.

He also recalled Tinubu’s more recent transit through Los Angeles while travelling to Japan, saying the President and his delegation spent several days in the United States before continuing their journey.

“We were in Los Angeles for a few days before we flew to Yokohama, Japan. We were in America, I was there with them. So it is politics, we can talk about this every single election cycle, it is just politics,” he said.

Domestic priorities behind absence

Osodi’s comments came amid criticism of Tinubu’s decision to stay away from the UNGA for the third consecutive year.

The Presidency had announced that Vice President Kashim Shettima would represent Nigeria and lead the country’s delegation to the annual gathering of world leaders in New York.

The presidential aide defended the decision, saying Tinubu was concentrating on domestic priorities, particularly the economy and security.

He maintained that the President’s absence would not prevent Nigeria from advancing its interests at the international level, stressing that the country had several avenues through which it engaged with the global community.

“Nigeria has a diverse interest in all regional groups, continental groups and even groups of the South-South like the BRICS. So, the United Nations is not the only group that we are member of,” Osodi said.

“With or without his presence there will not change Nigeria’s role as giant of Africa, the leader of the economic resurgence of Africa,” he added.

Osodi further said Nigeria would still be adequately represented at the UNGA through its Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Jimoh Ibrahim, alongside other members of the Nigerian delegation.

The defence came as questions continued to emerge over Tinubu’s absence from one of the most prominent annual gatherings of heads of state and government.

Atiku demands explanation

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, however, has demanded an explanation for Tinubu’s third consecutive absence from the UNGA.

In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku described the UNGA as an important platform where world leaders promote their countries’ diplomatic, political and economic interests.

Atiku acknowledged that Shettima could represent Nigeria at the gathering but argued that delegation-level representation was different from the President personally attending the meeting.

“Vice President Shettima may represent Nigeria capably, but representation by delegation cannot permanently substitute for the personal authority, visibility and responsibility of the President,” Atiku said.

He also questioned why Tinubu would miss the meeting after Jimoh Ibrahim reportedly said arrangements had been made for the Nigerian President to sit close to US President Donald Trump.

“The seat was secured, but the President disappeared,” Atiku said.

The controversy has therefore centred not only on Tinubu’s absence from the 81st UNGA but also on the significance of presidential participation in high-level diplomatic engagements.

While the Presidency has maintained that Nigeria’s interests will be properly represented by Shettima and the country’s diplomatic team, critics have continued to question the decision to keep Tinubu away from the gathering for the third consecutive year.