The Presidency said on Tuesday that President Bola Tinubu has been following developments at home and is on top of the security situation in the country, contrary to the claim of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.
It also said that Tinubu did not travel without informing Nigerians of his whereabouts, saying he announced a private visit to France with a return date.
This was disclosed in a State House statement released on Tuesday and signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The statement was in response to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s lambasting of Tinubu for failing to tackle the security crisis in the country.
Atiku was reacting to the recent surge in the kidnapping and killing of citizens across the country, especially the killing of a nursing mother and her mother in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, and the murder of two monarchs in Ekiti State.
He wondered why the President embarked on a private visit to France amid the ravaging insecurity in the nation.
Onanuga, however, has described Atiku’s statement as reckless, claiming it fell short of what is expected from an elder statesman.
He said that contrary to Atiku’s claim, Tinubu is in constant touch with his officials and security chiefs and has directed them to stamp out every form of criminality in the country.
“Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s statement accusing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of fiddling amidst some security and economic challenges is, to say the least, reckless.
“Coming days after he made an equally reckless allegation against the President on the crude-for-loan deal for NNPC Limited, his latest statement fell short of what is expected from an elder statesman.
“We like to believe that Alhaji Atiku is still not nursing the hangover of his electoral defeat and now latches on any issue to attack President Tinubu.
“He is in constant touch with his officials and security chiefs and has directed them to stamp out every form of criminality in the country. He has particularly ordered them to apprehend those criminals responsible for the murder of two monarchs in Ekiti State and the kidnapping of some pupils in the state.
“If Alhaji Atiku is really concerned about security issues and not playing cheap politics, he should have known that President Tinubu is on top of issues and working hard to restore peace to every part of our country.
“Our security agencies are working very hard to bring the security situation under control. President Tinubu is giving them all the necessary support they need to win the battle against criminal elements and secure every inch of our country,” part of the statement reads.