President Bola Tinubu’s extended working vacation outside Nigeria has revived questions about the constitutional procedure for transferring presidential powers to Vice-President Kashim Shettima when the President is away or unable to discharge his functions.
Tinubu, who left Nigeria on August 30 for a working vacation in Europe, is expected to return on Tuesday, September 29, according to reports. His prolonged absence has drawn criticism from opposition figures and other concerned Nigerians, particularly over whether the constitutional requirements governing presidential absence were followed.
At the centre of the debate is Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution. The provision states that when the President transmits a written declaration to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives that he is proceeding on vacation or is otherwise unable to discharge his functions, the Vice-President shall discharge those functions as Acting President until another written declaration is transmitted.
The Constitution also provides a mechanism for the National Assembly where the President is unable or fails to transmit such a declaration. It does not, however, state that a President automatically loses the power to govern merely because he has spent 21 days outside the country.
That distinction has become important as critics question why Shettima has represented Tinubu at some engagements rather than formally becoming Acting President.
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, through his spokesman Phrank Shaibu, has previously questioned Tinubu’s repeated absence from major international engagements, including the United Nations General Assembly. Shaibu has challenged the Presidency to explain the President’s absence and the arrangements for governance during such periods.
The Presidency, however, has maintained that Tinubu remains in charge and continues to work while abroad.
Information and National Orientation Minister Mohammed Idris said the President’s decision to ask Shettima to represent him at the UNGA did not diminish Nigeria’s diplomatic standing.
“President Tinubu is currently on annual leave, and his decision to ask the Vice President to lead Nigeria’s delegation is neither unusual nor a diminution of the country’s diplomatic standing.”
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Idris added: “Vice President Shettima carries the full mandate of the President and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal has also defended the arrangement, arguing that technological advances allow a President to continue performing his duties from outside the country.
“When the President travelled, he made it very clear that he was going on a working leave. Wherever the President is, he is working for Nigeria,” he said.
“Nigeria is evolving, and the President can work anywhere. That is why we are investing so much in technology, to be able to work wherever you are,” he said.
The constitutional question, therefore, is narrower than whether Tinubu can physically work from abroad. The key issue is whether the constitutional procedure concerning presidential absence was complied with.
If the required declaration was transmitted, Section 145 provides a clear mechanism for Shettima to exercise presidential functions. If it was not, the Constitution provides a separate route involving the National Assembly.
Consequently, the length of Tinubu’s stay abroad may raise legitimate questions about transparency and continuity of government, but duration alone does not establish a constitutional breach.
The controversy ultimately underscores a recurring tension in Nigeria’s presidential system: the difference between the President remaining politically and administratively active while abroad and the formal constitutional process for vesting presidential functions in the Vice-President.
As Tinubu prepares to return, the issue is likely to remain part of the wider debate over executive accountability, constitutional compliance and the limits of presidential discretion during extended absences from the country.