At a time when insecurity, hunger remains a major concern for millions of Nigerians, President Bola Tinubu is in France on annual leave, Vice President Kashim Shettima is in New York representing Nigeria at the 81st United Nations General Assembly, while Senate President Godswill Akpabio is in Italy, where he says he travelled on a spiritual pilgrimage to pray for Nigeria and against insecurity, terrorism and banditry.
Individually, each trip has an explanation. The president is on an official annual leave. The vice president is undertaking an important diplomatic assignment on behalf of the country. And the Senate president says his visit to Italy was motivated by his Christian faith and his desire to seek divine intervention for Nigeria. But taken together, their simultaneous absence from Nigeria raises a question that should not simply be dismissed as political noise:
At a time of national anxiety, how reassuring is it for Nigerians to see the three highest-ranking political figures of the country outside the country at the same time? That question is not necessarily about whether they have the constitutional or administrative right to travel. It is about leadership visibility, public confidence and the symbolism of national leadership.
Nigeria is not experiencing ordinary times. Communities in parts of the country continue to deal with terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and communal violence. The security situation has remained sufficiently serious to attract sustained attention from the government, security agencies and international organisations.
Human Rights Watch reported persistent insecurity across Nigeria in 2025, including deadly attacks and kidnappings in several regions. Data cited by the European Union Agency for Asylum from ACLED also recorded thousands of security incidents across Nigeria between January 2024 and December 2025.
The reported mass kidnapping in Niger State in August and the recent deaths of detainees in NSCDC custody in Minna have further intensified public concern about security and the conduct of security operations. Against this background, Nigerians naturally look towards their leaders for reassurance. President Tinubu’s absence does not mean that the Nigerian government has ceased to function.
The Presidency has described his European trip as annual leave, and the Constitution provides a mechanism for presidential functions to be performed by the Vice President when the President proceeds on vacation, subject to the required written declaration. Therefore, the issue is not simply whether Nigeria has a constitutional mechanism for continuity. The bigger question is whether Nigerians feel sufficiently reassured by the way that continuity is being demonstrated.
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Vice President Kashim Shettima is not in New York for a holiday. He arrived in the United States on Monday, to represent President Tinubu and lead Nigeria’s delegation to the 81st UN General Assembly. His programme includes Nigeria’s national statement and high-level engagements on issues affecting Nigeria and Africa. That is a legitimate state assignment. In fact, international diplomacy requires senior Nigerian officials to represent the country abroad.
But Shettima’s simultaneous absence with the President means the public naturally becomes more attentive to who is physically overseeing domestic affairs and communicating with Nigerians at home. Akpabio said he travelled to Italy to pray for President Tinubu, Vice President Shettima, himself, members of the National Assembly and the Federal Executive Council. He also said he prayed against insecurity, terrorism and banditry and for peaceful elections in 2027. Reports from The Guardian and other Nigerian outlets confirmed his visit to the St. Padre Pio prayer ground in San Giovanni Rotondo.
There is nothing inherently unusual about a public official practising his faith or seeking spiritual strength. But the timing inevitably attracts attention. When Nigerians are confronted with kidnappings, terrorism, bandit attacks and fear in their communities, seeing the country’s Senate President abroad praying for the security situation can provoke different reactions. For some citizens, it may represent faith and hope. For others, it may raise a more uncomfortable question: where is the visible political action accompanying the prayers?
Prayer and governance do not have to be enemies. A leader can pray and still demand stronger intelligence, better equipment, improved welfare for security personnel, effective prosecution of criminals and greater protection for vulnerable communities. It is important not to describe the country as literally being without leadership. Nigeria has functioning institutions. Ministers, governors, security chiefs, civil servants, the National Assembly and other public institutions continue to operate.
The constitution also provides mechanisms for continuity when the president is away. The concern is therefore more about perception and leadership presence than a constitutional vacuum. Leadership is not only about who has legal authority. It is also about who citizens can see, hear and hold accountable when the country faces moments of fear and uncertainty.
A frightened farmer in a community affected by banditry may not be thinking about constitutional succession. A parent worried about kidnapping may not be following the president’s itinerary. A family waiting for a missing relative may simply want to know that the government is fully engaged. That is why visibility matters. The real question Is not who is running Nigeria? The more useful question is: How is Nigeria being led and reassured while its principal political figures are temporarily abroad?
That is a question the Presidency, and the National Assembly can answer through consistent communication. Nigerians deserve to know that the machinery of government remains fully operational regardless of where their leaders are physically located. They deserve reassurance that security operations continue without interruption. They deserve clear information about who is responsible for what. And, most importantly, they deserve results.
Nigeria’s leaders do not necessarily have to remain inside the country every day to demonstrate leadership. Presidents travel. Vice presidents undertake international assignments. Senate presidents attend international engagements and personal activities. That is normal in a modern state. But there are moments when the public expects something more: visible coordination, clear communication and decisive action.
With Tinubu in France, Shettima in New York and Akpabio in Italy, the optics are undeniably striking. It should therefore be an opportunity for the government to demonstrate that physical absence does not translate into administrative absence. The president’s leave should not interrupt governance. The vice president’s international assignment should not weaken domestic coordination. And the Senate president’s spiritual pilgrimage should not obscure the constitutional responsibility of the National Assembly to scrutinise the government and represent the interests of Nigerians.
This is not an argument against foreign travel. It is not an argument against annual leave. It is not an argument against diplomacy. And it is certainly not an argument against prayer. It is an argument for visible, accountable and reassuring leadership. Nigeria is too large and too troubled for citizens to feel that leadership is distant when insecurity is close to home. The government has repeatedly assured Nigerians that security agencies are intensifying operations against terrorists, bandits and other criminal groups.
Now, more than ever, those assurances must be matched by measurable action. The president may be in France. The vice president may be in New York. The Senate president may be in Rome. But for millions of Nigerians facing insecurity, economic hardship and uncertainty, the Nigerian state must never feel far away.
