The African Democratic Party (ADC), the Obedient Movement and the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) yesterday knocked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over his absence at the 2026 Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day.

The president is currently in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), where he is attending the 2026 edition of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW), which kicked off on Monday.

Vice President Shettima led members of the Federal Executive Council (FEC), leaders and members of the National Assembly as well as service chiefs, members of the diplomatic corps and other dignitaries to the Eagle Square in Abuja, where he represented the president.

The Armed Forces Remembrance Day is an annual event marked on January 15 to recognise the sacrifices of the fallen heroes, honour the serving members of the military and the living veterans.

The tradition is that during the Armed Forces Remembrance Day’s commemoration, the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces inspects the Guard of Honour, lays the wreath, signs the Remembrance Day register and releases the ceremonial pigeons as a symbol of national peace and freedom.

President Tinubu was also absent at the 2025 Armed Forces Remembrance Day, as he was, just like this year, at the UAE for the 2025 edition of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week. At that time, he had on January 11 left Nigeria to participate in the summit held from January 12 to January 18.

The president personally attended the 2024 Armed Forces Remembrance Day.

Last year, the federal government cancelled the Independence Anniversary parade that had been scheduled to mark Nigeria’s 65th Independence Day on October 1, 2025. The government did not give any reason for the decision to cancel the parade.

The Defence Headquarters and the government dismissed reports linking the cancellation to an alleged coup plot against President Tinubu’s administration.

The DHQ explained that decision to cancel the October 1 parade had nothing to do with any alleged coup attempt but was taken to allow Tinubu to attend a strategic bilateral meeting outside the country and enable members of the Armed Forces of Nigeria to sustain momentum in ongoing military operations against terrorism, insurgency and banditry.

Leadership can’t be outsourced – ADC

In its response, the ADC criticised President Tinubu for being absent at the 2026 Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day in Abuja.

The party described the president’s absence as “troubling,” arguing that the physical and moral presence of the Commander-in-Chief is a vital symbol of solidarity with troops and military families at a time of worsening insecurity.

Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, National Publicity Secretary of the ADC, in a statement, noted that the day was set aside to honour the courage, sacrifice and patriotism of the men and women who have laid down their lives in defence of Nigeria.

He stated: “This is ordinarily a solemn national moment, one that demands presence, reflection and leadership at the highest level. It is therefore deeply troubling that the President of the Federal Republic is absent and unavailable on a day meant to symbolise solidarity with our armed forces and the families who continue to bear the cost of Nigeria’s security failures.”

ADC argued that at a time when Nigerian soldiers are overstretched across multiple fronts, battling insurgency, banditry and violent crime, “leadership cannot be outsourced, postponed or treated as ceremonial. The physical and moral presence of the Commander-in-Chief on this day is not optional; it is a statement of respect, responsibility and shared sacrifice.

“The ADC honours the fallen, stands with serving personnel and recognises the quiet resilience of military families who continue to pay the ultimate price for a nation that has yet to match their sacrifice with competent governance, clear strategy and genuine political will.

“Remembrance must go beyond wreaths and words. It must be reflected in leadership that shows up, takes responsibility and places the lives of Nigerians above image management, foreign trips or political convenience,” ADC said.

‘President’s absence, disregard for fallen heroes’

CISCLAC Executive Director Auwal Musa Rafsanjani and the Obedience Movement flayed Tinubu’s absence at this year’s Armed Forces Celebration and Remembrance Day as a troubling signal of disregard for Nigeria’s fallen heroes.

Speaking to Daily Trust yesterday, Rafsanjani said the president’s failure to attend the solemn ceremony undermined efforts to honour soldiers who had sacrificed their lives for national peace and security.

Rafsanjani said: “It doesn’t show encouragement, love or support for our armed forces.”

He stressed that symbolic gestures like attending memorials are vital for boosting morale among troops currently deployed across conflict zones in Zamfara, Niger, Plateau and Benue States and the South East.

“These men and women are battling terrorists and criminals so Nigerians can live peacefully. Recognising them publicly is the least the government can do,” he added.

Drawing comparisons with democracies such as the United States, Rafsanjani observed that military personnel are accorded priority in public institutions as a mark of respect.

He urged Nigeria’s leadership to emulate such practices, insisting that appreciation of the armed forces strengthens democratic control and national unity.

“The absence of the president sends the wrong message. Our heroes deserve recognition, and the government must show commitment to those who continue to sacrifice for the nation,” Rafsanjani said.

Also speaking to Daily Trust, the National Coordinator of the Obidient Movement, Yunusa Tanko, said the president’s absence sent the wrong signal at a time the nation was expected to honour soldiers who paid the supreme price in defence of the country.

“Yes, I was saying that it goes to show you the level in which the country has been held. It’s a total disrespect and it shows lack of command that we are already facing in the country,” Tanko said.

According to him, the development further reinforced concerns being raised by critics about the president’s leadership capacity.

“This is just to confirm some of the suspicions that we are making as regards the state of the health of the president, whether he has the capacity to lead this country, considering the fact that we’re celebrating and honouring our fallen heroes,” he said.

Tanko argued that the Armed Forces Remembrance Day was too important for the president to be absent, regardless of other commitments outside the country.

“Mr President should have made sure he took care of this particular very important day, not to find him absentee,” he said.

He stressed that the occasion was meant to demonstrate national unity and solidarity with the armed forces and families of fallen soldiers.

“No matter what will happen outside the country, this is the most important day in the Nigerian emphasis where we respect them and show them that we are together with them, those who have committed and sacrificed their lives for the country,” Tanko added.

No response from Presidency, APC

Efforts by Daily Trust to get a reaction from the Presidency were unsuccessful, as the phone lines of the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, and the Special Adviser to the President on Policy Communications, Daniel Bwala, could not be reached. Text and WhatsApp messages sent to Bwala were also not replied to.

Also, the National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Barrister Felix Morka, neither answered phone calls nor responded to WhatsApp and text messages sent to him. The APC’s National Director of Publicity, Alhaji Bala Ibrahim, could not be reached either, (Daily Trust)