chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, has berated President Bola Tinubu for not attending the just concluded 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York.
Eze said the development is worrisome, stressing that it has raised serious concern for Nigeria’s international visibility and diplomatic engagement.
In a statement on Monday, Chief Eze reasoned that it has become increasingly difficult to come to terms with why President Tinubu decided to stay away from UNGA for three consecutive years.
The ADC stalwart noted that Tinubu did not attend the 79th UNGA in 2024, the 80th in 2025, and presently the 2026 edition, adding that it was Vice President Kashim Shettima, who has represented Nigeria on all occasions.
Eze contended that President Tinubu’s continuous non-attendance has denied Nigeria the benefits that accrue from the personal presence of a sitting President at such an important gathering of world leaders.
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He wondered why the president shied away from the world summit after spending huge sums of money to deodorize his image in the US and the hyping that attended the president’s expected travel to the US by his handlers.
“For months, the Tinubu administration has spent enormous political and financial capital trying to repair its standing in Washington.
“The federal government entered into a $9 million lobbying arrangement aimed partly at countering damaging narratives about Nigeria, while senior officials, including the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, were allegedly deployed for sustained engagements with the United States.
“The government also advertised a proposed Nigeria-US mining agreement expected to be advanced around UNGA, Eze stated.
Eze, therefore challenged the Presidency to provide Nigerians with an acceptable explanation why President Tinubu decided to stay away from UNGA.
According to him, Nigeria cannot afford to have a president who appears reluctant to personally engage with his counterparts at a major international diplomatic forum.
He posited that the United Nations General Assembly provides Nigeria with an important platform to advance its national interests, attract investment, strengthen bilateral relations and project the country’s voice on global issues.
Though conceding that the Shettima is constitutionally empowered to represent the president as he has done on three occasions at UNGA, Eze, however, contended that Nigeria’s participation in international diplomacy should go beyond delegation and ceremonial representation.
He stressed the importance of direct presidential engagement where appropriate, with reference to UNGA
“Nigeria is a major African country with enormous economic, political and strategic interests.
“Our president should be seen engaging directly with world leaders and advancing Nigeria’s interests, and not shying away when his physical presence matters most”, he pushed.
However, Eze also linked his concerns to the protracted controversy surrounding U.S. law-enforcement records relating to historical investigations involving President Tinubu over alleged drug deals.
He lamented that Tinubu presidency has exposed Nigeria to much ridicule in the comity of nations, pointing at how President Emmanuel Macron of France dumped Tinubu in his country and traveled to the US to commune with other world leaders at UNGA.
