By Taibat Ummi Yakubu

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has challenged President Bola Tinubu’s administration to publish daily, date-stamped photographs and videos of the president performing the rites of Umrah in Saudi Arabia, insisting that Nigerians deserve transparency over his trip.

Tinubu is scheduled to leave Abuja for Makkah on Thursday for the Islamic pilgrimage and is expected to return to Nigeria next week, according to a statement by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.

Onanuga said the visit would give the president an opportunity for spiritual reflection and prayers for Nigeria’s peace, unity, stability and progress.

However, Atiku has questioned the details of the planned journey, asking the Presidency to disclose Tinubu’s full itinerary and provide verifiable evidence of his activities throughout the visit.

The former vice-president made his position known through Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the African Democratic Congress presidential campaign council.

In the statement, Atiku expressed concern that Tinubu might make only a brief stop in Makkah before proceeding to France. He also raised questions about whether the journey was linked to the president’s health and a reported $20 billion loan request involving a French business partner.

Atiku called on the Presidency to release daily photographs and videos showing Tinubu at the Kaaba and participating in the Umrah rituals, with clear dates to establish when and where the images were taken.

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He argued that Nigerians should be able to independently verify the president’s presence in Makkah and understand his engagements during a trip officially presented as a spiritual mission for the country.

The former vice-president said he and other Nigerians would join Tinubu in praying for the nation’s peace and progress. However, he cautioned against invoking the name of Allah in vain, stressing that a pilgrimage undertaken in the name of national interest should be treated with seriousness.

Atiku further maintained that the president’s travel arrangements were a matter of public interest, particularly regarding his itinerary and the funding of the trip.

He urged the Presidency to address the questions surrounding the visit and provide what he described as the evidence Nigerians deserved.

The Presidency’s previously announced itinerary places Tinubu’s trip within a religious context, while Atiku’s intervention has shifted attention to demands for greater transparency over the president’s movements and official engagements abroad.