Rhodes-Vivour UK trip Maiduguri bombing criticism as ADC chieftain slams NSA Ribadu and Defence Minister over UK visit during Maiduguri attack

African Democratic Congress (ADC) chieftain and former Lagos State governorship candidate Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour has criticised the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, and Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (rtd), over their participation in President Bola Tinubu’s United Kingdom state visit amid renewed insecurity in the North-East, in what he described as a Rhodes-Vivour UK trip Maiduguri bombing criticism.

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Speaking during an interview on Arise Television’s Morning Show, Rhodes-Vivour said it was unacceptable for top security officials to accompany the President abroad at a time when a deadly bomb blast reportedly occurred in Maiduguri, Borno State, killing and displacing residents.

He alleged that while security chiefs were engaged in the UK visit, Nigerians were grappling with the aftermath of violence at home.

“The NSA and the Defence Minister were in England, sipping coffee, sipping tea while bombs were going off in Maiduguri,” he said.

Rhodes-Vivour further described the situation as a reflection of what he called insensitivity and poor prioritisation by the administration, arguing that the presence of key security officials abroad during a national emergency was “disgraceful”.

The comments come in the wake of reports of a bomb explosion in Maiduguri that reportedly killed several people and left many others injured shortly before President Tinubu’s departure for the UK state visit.

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His remarks have added to ongoing political debate over government response to insecurity, with critics and supporters offering sharply divided views on the handling of recent security challenges.