Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has called for the impeachment of President Bola Tinubu over his prolonged absence from Nigeria, arguing that the President cannot continue to govern the country from abroad.
Symfoni reports that he (Sowore) argued that the constitutional provision on presidential absence should be activated if the President stays outside the country beyond 21 days without formally transferring power.
“If he’s not back, then we should be talking about his impeachment tomorrow morning,” Sowore said.
According to him, the Constitution requires the President to formally transmit a declaration to the National Assembly when proceeding on vacation or when unable to discharge the functions of his office.
Sowore rejected the argument that Tinubu could continue performing his presidential duties from abroad, insisting that Nigeria cannot be effectively governed by a President who is outside the country for an extended period.
“I don’t believe that there is any working visitation. You have to be in town to be President of Nigeria,” he said.
The AAC presidential candidate also compared the situation with previous instances of prolonged presidential absence, arguing that Nigeria should not repeat what he described as past mistakes involving former Presidents Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and Muhammadu Buhari.
The Presidency has maintained that Tinubu’s foreign stay was a working visit and that he remained in contact with officials while away from the country.
Sowore, however, insisted that the constitutional provisions governing presidential absence must be followed, saying the Vice-President should assume the necessary presidential functions where the constitutional conditions are met.
