Turaki-led PDP faults Tinubu’s frequent foreign trips

The Interim National Working Committee (INWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), led by Dr Tanimu Turaki, has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s frequent foreign trips, arguing that they have yet to produce tangible improvements in Nigeria’s economy, security and citizens’ welfare.

The faction said the President’s overseas engagements had failed to translate into visible benefits for Nigerians despite the administration’s repeated claims of attracting investments and strengthening international partnerships.

“The contrast is difficult to ignore. A President can travel to France, Britain, the United Arab Emirates, Brazil, Japan, Kenya, Rwanda and other destinations to discuss investments and development.

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“Yet Nigeria remains burdened by insecurity, unemployment, poverty, weak infrastructure and a crushing cost of living,” the party said in its assessment of the President’s foreign trips.

Tinubu embarked on a three-week working vacation in Europe on August 30, with London as his first destination, according to his spokesman, Bayo Onanuga.

A statement from the State House said the President was expected to return to Nigeria after the working vacation to participate in preparations for the January 2027 election.

The PDP faction described the latest journey as Tinubu’s “52nd” foreign trip and claimed that the President had spent 261 days outside the country since assuming office, with taxpayers allegedly spending N37.64 billion on the trips.

The Presidency, however, has consistently maintained that Tinubu’s foreign engagements are aimed at attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), strengthening diplomatic relations and enhancing Nigeria’s position in the global community.

The administration has also pointed to investment commitments, memoranda of understanding and technology transfer arising from the trips, with officials putting the estimated value of FDI commitments secured since 2023 at about $50 billion.

“The primary objectives of Mr President’s overseas trips since assuming office in May 2023 have been the attraction of Foreign Direct Investment for the development of Nigeria’s economy, job and employment creation, poverty reduction, human-capita development and the development of infrastructure,” the administration said in defence of the President’s travels.

But the Turaki-led INWC dismissed the argument, insisting that the number of agreements or MoUs signed was less important than their impact on the daily lives of Nigerians.

The faction said the real measure of the President’s foreign engagements should be whether they had resulted in cheaper food, reliable electricity, affordable transportation, functioning hospitals and improved schools.

“The issue is not whether the President should travel. It is whether agreements have translated into cheaper food, reliable electricity, affordable transport, functioning hospitals and better schools.

“How much of the prosperity discussed in foreign capitals has reached ordinary Nigerian households?

“It is not enough to return from international engagements with photographs, handshakes, communiques and promises of billions of dollars in investments. Nigerians do not eat communiques or pay hospital bills with MoUs. Nigerians need results,” it stated.

The PDP faction said the demand for tangible results had become more urgent because of what it described as the “painful” economic reforms introduced by the Tinubu administration since 2023.

According to the party, the reforms, particularly the removal of fuel subsidy, may have improved some economic indicators but had also pushed millions of Nigerians into severe economic hardship as the cost of living increased and purchasing power declined.

The INWC also questioned the administration’s record on security, arguing that the investment agreements and international engagements had not translated into a safer environment for Nigerians.

“Even when the President is abroad, the problems he is expected to solve remain at home. The insecurity crisis makes the point particularly stark,” the faction said.

It cited the mass kidnapping reported in Niger State in August 2026, involving hundreds of people, as evidence of the vulnerability of communities to armed criminal groups.

The party, citing a Reuters report, said the attack killed at least 30 people and forced about 2,000 people to flee to neighbouring Benin Republic.

The INWC urged Tinubu to spend more time in Nigeria and focus on developing home-grown solutions to insecurity, the rising cost of living and the hardships allegedly caused by the administration’s reforms.

“The President may continue to travel but Nigeria cannot travel away from its problems,” the faction said.