President Bola Tinubu Falls at Democracy Day Event in Abuja
In an unexpected incident at Eagle Square, Abuja, President Bola Tinubu slipped and fell during the Democracy Day celebration in the Nigerian capital.
The 72-year-old President stumbled while climbing the steps to an official vehicle meant to take him around the square. Aides quickly helped him back to his feet, and he continued with the festivities. "He immediately went on with the ceremonial rounds. No issues," Dada Olusegun, a presidential aide, wrote on X.
Earlier in the day, President Tinubu addressed the nation via live broadcast, commemorating 25 years of uninterrupted democracy in Nigeria. In his speech, he honored both the deceased and living heroes who fought for the return to civilian rule from military dictatorship. Among those he mentioned were the late Moshood Abiola, who won the annulled June 12, 1993, presidential election, and his wife, the late Kudirat Abiola, who was killed during Sani Abacha's military regime.
President Tinubu also acknowledged living activists like former senator Shehu Sani, who was imprisoned during the Abacha dictatorship and is now an opposition politician. Responding to the incident, Sani remarked, "Not just President Tinubu, anyone alive can trip and fall; it happened to President Biden and Fidel Castro. Presidents are human beings and mortals," he wrote on X.
Atiku Abubakar, one of Tinubu's main challengers in the last presidential election, expressed his sympathy for the fall. "I sincerely sympathize with President Bola Tinubu over this unfortunate incident as he was set to review the parade on Democracy Day. I do hope that all is well with him," Atiku wrote on X.
The incident did not detract from the day's significance, celebrating the longest period of uninterrupted democracy in Nigeria's history and recognizing the sacrifices made for the country's democratic progress.
