JOS – President Bola Tinubu’s “touch-and-go” visit to Plateau State on Thursday has left a bitter taste in the mouths of grieving families, after the Commander-in-Chief cut his condolence mission short, citing a lack of electricity at the Jos airport.
The President touched down at Yakubu Gowon Airport on April 2, 2026, to meet with victims of the recent Palm Sunday massacre in Angwan Rukuba. But instead of a sit-down in the affected communities, the bereaved were ushered to the airport tarmac for a meeting that lasted barely long enough for the engines to cool.
The Ten-Minute Ultimatum
In a moment caught on camera that has since set the internet ablaze, a blunt Tinubu told the gathered families that his time was up because the runway lights weren’t working.
“You have no light at the airport, and I have to fly back within the next 10 minutes,” the President declared, essentially telling the victims he had to beat the sunset. “To the victims, there’s nothing I can give you, whether it’s money in millions, but console you and promise you that this experience will not repeat itself.”
“Cringe-Worthy” Leadership?
The optics of the President blaming his own government’s failing infrastructure—the lack of airport lighting—as the reason he couldn’t stay longer to comfort his citizens has triggered a wave of “cringe” across social media.
Critics were quick to pounce. “So the President is a victim of his own ‘NEPA’ problems now?” mocked one viral post under the trending hashtag #AirportPresident. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar didn’t hold back either, labeling the trip a “choreographed spectacle” for a leader more interested in his Easter holiday than the blood soaked into the Plateau soil.
A Promise Amid the Petrol Fumes
Despite the rushed atmosphere and the literal ticking clock, Tinubu did manage to squeeze in a promise of 1,000 new forest guards to help Governor Caleb Mutfwang secure the volatile state. He praised the Governor’s “containment” efforts before climbing back into the presidential jet and disappearing into the horizon—just as he promised—within the ten-minute window.
As the President heads to Lagos for Good Friday festivities, the people of Jos are left wondering if a ten-minute tarmac talk is all the “renewed hope” they can expect while their lights stay out and their streets remain unsafe.
