Former Nigerian Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari at the United Nations General Assembly, alongside President Bola Ahmed Tinubu beside an empty speaking podium.
By Kingdom Chieche Nwafor
There is something increasingly curious about President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s relationship with the United Nations General Assembly.
It is not that Nigeria is unrepresented.
It is not that Vice President Kashim Shettima is incapable of representing the country.
And it is certainly not that President Tinubu has suddenly become allergic to international travel.
The curious part is that, for three consecutive years, when world leaders gather in New York for one of the most important diplomatic events on the international calendar, Nigeria’s President has chosen to stay away.
In 2024, Vice President Kashim Shettima represented Nigeria.
In 2025, Shettima represented Nigeria again.
In 2026, it is Shettima once again.
Three years.
Three UN General Assemblies.
One President.
And one question that refuses to go away:
Why does President Tinubu keep missing the UN General Assembly?
Perhaps there is a perfectly reasonable explanation.
Perhaps there are considerations Nigerians are not aware of.
Perhaps the President genuinely believes that the Vice President can adequately handle Nigeria’s interests at the UN.
All of that is possible.
But if that is the case, why not simply tell Nigerians?
That is where I have a problem.
Because this is not a President who has demonstrated an aversion to travelling outside Nigeria.
Far from it.
President Tinubu has travelled extensively since assuming office. According to tallies published by Punch, his foreign trips had already run into dozens of journeys across numerous countries, with more than 200 days spent outside Nigeria by 2026.
Again, I am not opposed to presidential travel.
A Nigerian President should travel when travelling serves Nigeria’s interests. Diplomacy requires physical engagement. Investment promotion requires meetings. International cooperation requires relationships. A President cannot govern Nigeria as though the rest of the world does not exist.
But then comes the UN General Assembly.
New York.
The place where presidents, prime ministers, kings and other heads of government converge to discuss the affairs of the world.
Suddenly, the travelling President is not travelling.
Year after year.
That is what makes the matter interesting.
Maybe the Question Is Not “Where Is Tinubu?”
Perhaps we have been asking the wrong question.
The question may not really be:
Where is President Tinubu?
The more important question may be:
Why does his administration consider his presence necessary in so many international destinations, but repeatedly unnecessary at the UN General Assembly?
That is a completely different question.
And I believe it deserves a completely different answer.
If the President has determined that his personal attendance at UNGA is no longer necessary, then Nigerians deserve to understand the thinking behind that decision.
If it is because the Vice President can effectively represent the country, then let the administration explain why this arrangement has become the preferred approach.
If it is because of domestic responsibilities, let Nigerians know what those responsibilities are.
If it is annual leave, as the Federal Government has said regarding the 2026 absence, then that should be clearly communicated without turning the matter into a needless controversy.
There is nothing shameful about taking leave.
But when the same international event is missed repeatedly, explanations become more important, not less.
The Vice President Is Not the Problem
I want to make this very clear.
This is not about Vice President Kashim Shettima.
He is the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and has the authority to represent the President when delegated to do so.
Nobody should create an unnecessary rivalry between the President and his Vice President over this matter.
Shettima’s presence in New York does not mean Nigeria is absent.
But Nigeria being represented is not the same thing as the President being present.
There is a symbolic dimension to presidential attendance that cannot simply be wished away.
When the Nigerian President sits among other world leaders, when he speaks directly to the international community, when he holds bilateral meetings with other heads of government and when he personally presents Nigeria’s priorities, the country is represented by its highest political office holder.
There is value in that.
If the President decides not to attend, that is also a legitimate presidential choice.
But choices made by public officials are open to public questions.
That is democracy.
Tinubu Has Travelled. So What Is Different About UNGA?
This is where the administration needs to help Nigerians understand the distinction.
President Tinubu has travelled to different parts of the world.
He has attended meetings.
He has met foreign leaders.
He has participated in investment and diplomatic engagements.
He has gone abroad for matters his administration considered sufficiently important to require presidential presence.
Yet UNGA keeps appearing on the list of places where presidential presence is suddenly unnecessary.
Why?
What makes the United Nations General Assembly different?
That is what I want to know.
And I do not think that asking the question makes anyone anti-Tinubu.
It does not make anyone anti-government.
It does not make anyone anti-Nigeria.
It is simply a question about presidential priorities.
Three Absences Are No Longer an Accident
One absence can be explained.
Two absences can be explained.
But when the same thing happens three consecutive times, Nigerians naturally begin to look for the pattern.
And politics is often about patterns.
The President attended the UN General Assembly in 2023.
Then came 2024.
He did not attend.
2025 came.
He did not attend.
Now 2026 has arrived.
Again, he is not attending.
At what point does the government believe Nigerians are entitled to ask what has changed?
Because something clearly changed between 2023 and 2024.
What changed?
That is the missing piece of this conversation.
If There Is Nothing to Hide, Explain It
I am not asking President Tinubu to attend every international event.
I am not saying that presidential attendance at UNGA is compulsory.
I am not saying that Nigeria cannot be effectively represented by the Vice President.
And I am not suggesting that the President’s absence automatically means that Nigeria has lost anything diplomatically.
Those would be conclusions that the available facts do not establish.
My argument is simpler.
Explain the pattern.
The Presidency should not be uncomfortable with a question that can be answered with facts.
If there is a strategic reason, Nigerians should hear it.
If there is a scheduling reason, explain it.
If there is a personal reason, Nigerians can understand that too.
If it is simply a decision that the President does not need to attend personally, then say so.
What Nigerians should not have to do is construct explanations for their President.
Leadership Is Also About Being Seen Where It Matters
There is an argument that physical presence does not necessarily translate into better governance.
That is true.
A President can attend every summit in the world and still fail to solve problems at home.
Likewise, a President can miss an international gathering and still have a productive administration.
But leadership is not only about what happens behind closed doors.
It is also about presence.
It is about visibility.
It is about demonstrating where a country places its priorities.
The UN General Assembly may be ceremonial in some respects, but it is also a major diplomatic platform.
Nigeria is too important a country to be invisible in conversations that shape the international system.
If President Tinubu has chosen to delegate that responsibility to his Vice President, Nigerians deserve to know why.
Not because Nigeria has no representative.
But because the person at the top has made a deliberate choice not to be there.
And deliberate choices deserve explanations.
Perhaps the Real Issue Is Accountability
We have become too accustomed to defending political office holders instead of demanding explanations from them.
Whenever Nigerians ask questions about government decisions, someone quickly appears to say, “What is wrong with you? The Vice President is there.”
That misses the point.
The question is not whether Shettima is there.
The question is why Tinubu is not.
If tomorrow President Tinubu sends the Vice President to another major international gathering, Nigerians may accept it.
But when the President repeatedly attends other international engagements while consistently staying away from UNGA, the natural question becomes unavoidable.
Is New York the one major international destination that does not require President Tinubu’s personal presence?
If yes, tell us why.
There is nothing complicated about that.
Mr President, Nigerians Are Simply Asking
Mr President, Nigerians know that you have the constitutional authority to decide where you travel.
They know that you can delegate responsibilities to your Vice President.
They know that Nigeria will still be represented in New York.
But Nigerians also know that your administration has spent considerable time and resources on international engagements since you assumed office.
So, when the President who has travelled extensively repeatedly skips the same global gathering, people will ask questions.
And they should.
Not with hatred.
Not with propaganda.
Not with conspiracy theories.
Just with the ordinary expectation that comes with democratic leadership.
Why?
Why 2024?
Why 2025?
Why 2026?
And what is the administration’s long-term position on presidential attendance at the UN General Assembly?
Perhaps the answer is perfectly simple.
Perhaps it is even completely innocent.
Then give Nigerians the simple answer.
Because after three consecutive absences, saying that “the Vice President is representing Nigeria” answers the question of who is in New York.
It does not answer the question of why the President is not.
And that, Mr President, remains the question.
Kingdom Chieche Nwafor Is A Development Activist and Publisher of Community Reporters.
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