African Action Congress presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore has criticised the public reception organised for President Bola Tinubu following his return to Nigeria after spending about a month abroad.
Sowore expressed his views in a post on X, accompanying the statement with a video showing the President being received at the airport.
The AAC candidate alleged that Nigeria had repeatedly been used to support presidents who required extended medical attention abroad, describing the practice as a recurring feature of successive administrations.
Sowore referenced the governments of former Presidents Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and Muhammadu Buhari, arguing that what he described as a similar pattern was now being repeated under Tinubu.
“We’ve been here before,” Sowore said, alleging that presidents had been taken abroad for medical treatment before returning to public receptions that, in his view, did not address questions surrounding their periods of absence.
He further criticised the manner in which the President’s return was publicly presented, arguing that Nigerians should continue to question the circumstances surrounding such episodes rather than simply move on.
Sowore wrote that the same political actors associated with the Yar’Adua and Buhari administrations were now involved in the Tinubu administration, presenting this as evidence of continuity in the way presidential health-related absences were handled.
He also criticised those involved in organising the airport reception, alleging that the ceremony was intended to encourage the public to put the episode behind them without raising further questions.
“No shame, no regrets and they want you to move on as though nothing is wrong,” he wrote.
The comments came after Tinubu returned to Nigeria following his overseas trip, with supporters and government officials present to receive him.
Sowore’s remarks form part of his broader criticism of successive Nigerian administrations and the country’s handling of public-sector leadership and healthcare.
His statements about the previous administrations and the circumstances surrounding presidential medical treatment were presented as political criticism and allegations rather than independently established findings in the report.
The issue of overseas medical treatment by senior public officials has remained a subject of public debate in Nigeria, particularly around questions of accountability, the cost of healthcare and the development of domestic medical infrastructure.
Sowore has previously used public statements and social media posts to criticise government policies and the state of Nigeria’s healthcare system.
His latest comments therefore focused both on Tinubu’s return and on what he described as a broader pattern involving the treatment and public presentation of Nigerian presidents who spend extended periods outside the country for medical or other reasons.
