Explainer: Who is in Charge of Nigeria Amid Buhari, Osinbajo's Absence?
Presently, both President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo are not in Nigeria as they have official assignments to carry out abroad.
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The unavoidable absence of President Buhari and Osinbajo is raising fears among sections of the Nigerian polity that there is a vacuum in the presidency.
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The argument from some persons is that since the president did not transmit power to the head of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, the next after Osinbajo, there is a cause for worry.
What the constitution says in this case
Going by the provision of section 145(1) of the 1999 constitution, neither President Buhari nor Osinbajo is under obligation to be physically present in the country to discharge their duties.
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This implies that there is only a vacuum if the president is proceeding on vacation or is unable to perform his role due to sickness or death.
Section 145(1) of the 1999 constitution states:
“Whenever the president transmits to the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives a written declaration that he is proceeding on vacation or that he is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office, until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary such functions shall be discharged by the vice-president as acting president.”
From the above, Buhari and Osinbajo are permitted to carry out their roles from any part of the world since neither of them is incapacitated or dead.
When there is a vacuum
Although the constitution is not specific on the president's transmission of power each time he is absent in the country, there can only be a vacuum, in which case he is expected to appoint the vice president to perform on his behalf by way of a written letter.
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Explaining this further, a legal practitioner and policy analyst, Timi Olagunju, said:
“The constitution does not specifically state that any travel means that the president must transmit power. That is why there is a clamour for the parliament to review the law according to global standards, because section 144 talks of incapacity, while section 145 talks of vacation or ill-health, and sticks it to the parliament. That implies transmitting the power to the vice-president as acting until he sends another letter to say he is back.
“The constitution does not provide for a vacuum, except the president says there is a vacuum. The president has to transmit an official letter. There are two instances in which this section has been raised — Goodluck Jonathan and Buhari’s excessive stay in London. In the case of Goodluck, there was no transmission from Yar’Adua to him, but the parliament had to use the doctrine of necessity.
“If the president does not transmit officially, there cannot be said to be a vacuum. It means by implication that the president is still acting even though he has travelled. On a lighter note, he can preside virtually..."
What happens if a sudden vacuum happens
However, as contained in section 146(2) of the constitution, if Nigeria suddenly finds itself without a president and vice-president, the Senate president automatically takes charge of the government for three months within which a national election will be held to fill the vacuum.
But since Buhari did not send any letter to the National Assembly as required by section 145 and is not unable to perform as president, both he and Osinbajo are fully in charge of Nigeria, regardless of their absence.
Resign now, hand over power to Osinbajo, Governor Ortom tells Buhari
Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue state had urged Buhari to hand over to Osinbajo, saying from all indications, the president lacked the capacity to rescue the country from the worsening economic and security predicaments confronting the nation.
The governor who spoke on Monday, March 14, with newsmen in Makurdi, among others, said since the inception of Nigeria even before the independence, it had never witnessed this kind of nepotism.
Ortom is one of the prominent critics of the President Buhari-led government, especially on matters of security and the economy of the country.
Source: Legit.ng
