The habit of addressing Nigerians once every two weeks over the rising Coronavirus disease in the country by President Muhammadu Buhari has been described as “totally unacceptable.”
Pro-democracy group, Concerned Nigerians, made the remarks on Thursday while calling on Mr Buhari to cease hiding or step aside from the saddle of leadership.
Since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country late February, the president officially addressed Nigerians twice at intervals of two weeks each.
Led by Deji Adeyanju, the group in a statement signed by its convener said, presently, the country has no leader, a development that has forced state governors to unconstitutionally hijack the responsibility of the Federal Government.
“The President needs to show leadership. Everyday we watch the American President, Donald Trump addressing Americans and meeting with his cabinet on efforts being made to curtail the virus from spreading. This lackadaisical attitude of addressing Nigerians every two-week by President Muhammadu Buhari in such a time like this is totally unacceptable,” Mr Adeyanju said.
“The demise of the President’s Chief of Staff, Mr. Abba Kyari to the COVID-19 pandemic should ordinarily, be an eye opener for the president to see that he must act decisively and timely in order to contain this deadly virus.
“I am also tempted to ask, where are all the testing kits and equipment donated by Chinese billionaire, Jack ma? Why is Kano complaining of not having enough testing kits? And why are we not investigating the alleged mysterious deaths and secret burials happening in Kano?
“If President Buhari is afraid of getting infected or leading the country from the front, he should resign so that a more competent hand can take over. This is not the time to be hiding under the bed in Aso Rock. Thousands of citizens will die if the president doesn’t show leadership. Come out of hiding.
“The president has not convened the Federal Executive Council meeting for weeks now. He should do that immediately either through Skype, teleconferencing or physically at the villa to set our clear cut agendas to prevent more unavoidable deaths of Nigerians and spread of the virus. The president should not leave the country on auto pilot without clear direction or leadership.
“Currently, there is a leadership vacuum in Nigeria and it’s so sad that it’s the Governors who are now rising to the occasion. The 36 state governor just agreed for a nationwide lockdown of the country since the Commander-in-Chief has absconded from his duties and responsibilities. Under our laws, the governors cannot lockdown the country but when the president is missing in action during a pandemic, then we must all commend the decisive actions of the governors no matter how unconstitutional the act may be.
“Conclusively, one must ask: where is the our president and the Vice President?” the activist queried.
