The uncomfortable truth in the turbulent arena of naija-politics is that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's health is deteriorating before our eyes, and yet we're all pretending not to notice. He's been tripping, stumbling, and falling ever since he started his presidential campaign in 2023, and the pattern is getting worse, not better.

The most recent incident happened just this week in Turkey, and it was difficult to watch. President Bola Tinubu stumbled and fell on Tuesday during a welcome ceremony in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. The incident occurred as he walked alongside Turkish President Recep Erdogan.

Think about that for a moment. The President of Nigeria, on a state visit to a foreign country, falls in front of his host and in full view of international cameras. It's embarrassing for Nigeria, and more importantly, it's deeply concerning about the President's physical condition.

But Turkey is not the first time. Not even close.

President Tinubu was reported to have stumbled three times between 2021 and 2026, with each incident captured on video and shared widely on social media. Let's count them:

March 2021 - Kaduna: Tinubu fell during a public event, long before he became president.

June 2024 - Abuja: President Bola Tinubu, tripped and fell while trying to climb the truck on his way to give his speech at Eagles Square in Abuja on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, to mark Democracy Day. The video went viral, showing the President losing his footing and falling face-down while attempting to board the parade vehicle.

January 2026 - Turkey: In January 2026, Guardian Nigeria reported that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu briefly stumbled during an official reception parade in Turkey. The incident was captured on video and widely circulated on social media.

Three documented falls in five years. And these are just the ones caught on camera. How many times has he stumbled or lost his balance when cameras weren't rolling?

The presidency, of course, has a well-rehearsed response to each incident. A spokesman for the president, Bayo Onanuga, later said that Tinubu had stepped on a metal object "on the floor, which made him lose his balance". "This is not a big deal, except for those who want to make mischief out of a fleeting incident. It was a mere stumble, thank God, not a fall," he added.

"A mere stumble, not a fall." This is the semantic game they play every time. As if calling it a "stumble" instead of a "fall" changes the fundamental reality: the President of Nigeria keeps losing his balance in public.

And it's not just the falls. It's everything surrounding them.

The constant medical trips to France. The extended absences. The slurred speech. The obvious physical struggles during public appearances. The walking stick that appeared during visits. All of this points to a man whose health is failing, but who is determined—or being forced—to continue in office regardless.

The departure on April 2, 2025, marks Tinubu's seventh visit to France since assuming office in May 2023. His total trips to the country since March 2023 now stand at nine . Nine trips to France in three years! And the pattern is consistent: In June 2023, barely a month after assuming office, Tinubu travelled to France for the New Global Financial Pact Summit, his first international trip as president. While the official reason for this trip was diplomatic, sources reported that Tinubu had received medical treatment during his stay .

The presidency always packages these trips as "working visits" or "private visits" or "diplomatic engagements." But Nigerians aren't fools. We know what's happening. More recently, in February 2025, Tinubu traveled to France for another "private visit," which was later revealed to be a medical trip .

His own health before the 2023 elections was already a major concern. "Tinubu is in Paris, France for a medical checkup. His health is deteriorating due to old age," a top source told SaharaReporters back in 2021, long before he even became president.

And the concerns were justified. SaharaReporters had reported that Tinubu spent over four months patronising hospitals in France, the United States and the United Kingdom where he underwent surgeries between 2020 and 2022.

Tinubu is 73 years old now. His recent trip to Turkey where he fell again says something profound about his health status. Although the details are deliberately kept obscure, his old age requires him to be in need of constant medical attention.

And here's where the ruthless mathematics of naija-politics become unavoidable: What does this spell for Nigerians as a nation against 2027?

Should we vote for old people who need constant medical attention? Or should we withhold our votes against them?

This is not ageism. This is a legitimate question about fitness for office. Being President of Nigeria is one of the most demanding jobs in the world. You're managing a complex nation of over 200 million people, dealing with multiple security crises, navigating a collapsing economy, making life-and-death decisions daily.

Can someone who falls three times in five years, who needs to travel abroad for medical treatment every few months, who is 73 years old and showing obvious signs of physical deterioration, really handle that job effectively for another four years?

The honest answer is no.

But in the twisted logic of naija-politics, Tinubu will likely run again in 2027. He'll tell us he's fit and healthy. His aides will dismiss any concerns as "mischief" from political enemies. His supporters will accuse anyone raising health questions of ageism or tribalism or trying to destabilize the government.

And tragically, he might win. Not because Nigerians believe he's healthy enough to lead, but because of incumbency advantage, because of money, because of political machinery, because the opposition is divided.

But what happens after he wins? What happens when a 77-year-old man with obvious health challenges has to govern Nigeria for another four years?

A political risk consultancy, Menas Associates, says it is common knowledge that Tinubu is unwell, but unclear what illness has forced him to frequently travel to both France and the UK for medical treatment. And more ominously, the consultancy warns that there is always the risk that Tinubu's health will deteriorate in a way that incapacitates him, triggering a political crisis because he has chosen not to hand over power to his deputy, Kashim Shettima, whenever he leaves the country.

Think about what this means. Nigeria could face a constitutional crisis if the President becomes so ill he can't perform his duties but refuses to transfer power to the Vice President. We've seen this movie before with President Yar'Adua, and it wasn't pretty.

The question Nigerians need to ask themselves is simple: Do we want to go through that again?

Do we want a president who spends more time in French hospitals than in Nigerian government offices? Do we want a leader who falls during official ceremonies and has to be helped up by aides? Do we want someone whose health is so fragile that every public appearance becomes a source of national anxiety?

Or do we deserve better?

Nigeria deserves a president who is physically fit, mentally sharp, and capable of handling the enormous demands of the office. We deserve someone who doesn't need to fly to Paris every few months for medical treatment. We deserve someone who can walk, stand, and speak without struggling.

Age alone shouldn't disqualify anyone from leadership. But age combined with obvious health problems, frequent medical trips, multiple public falls, and a pattern of deterioration should absolutely be disqualifying factors.

And yet, because of the way naija-politics works—where loyalty matters more than competence, where money buys elections, where incumbent presidents are almost impossible to defeat—Tinubu will probably run in 2027, and he might even win.

But Nigerians need to wake up and ask themselves the hard question: Is this really what we want? A president who literally cannot stay on his feet?

The falls are not isolated incidents. They're symptoms of a larger problem that everyone can see but nobody in power wants to acknowledge. Tinubu's health is failing. And if we give him another term, we're signing up for four more years of medical tourism, four more years of presidential absences, four more years of wondering if our leader is physically capable of leading.

Should we vote for old people who need medical attention? The answer depends on the person. If they're healthy and capable despite their age, fine. But if they're falling in public, if they're constantly traveling for medical treatment, if they're obviously struggling physically, then no—we shouldn't vote for them.

Nigeria has enough problems without adding an incapacitated president to the list.

What does Tinubu's recent fall in Turkey and his pattern of health issues mean for 2027? It should mean that Nigerians seriously reconsider whether he's fit for another term. It should spark a national conversation about presidential health and fitness for office. It should make us demand transparency about our leaders' medical conditions.

But in the deeply flawed system of naija-politics where these conversations are dismissed as political attacks rather than legitimate concerns, where questioning a leader's health is seen as disrespectful rather than necessary, where image management trumps truth-telling, nothing will probably change.

Tinubu will keep falling. His aides will keep calling them "mild missteps." His supporters will keep attacking anyone who raises concerns. And Nigeria will continue to be led by a man whose health is clearly deteriorating.

Unless Nigerians decide enough is enough. Unless we demand better. Unless we use our votes in 2027 to say: "We deserve a president who can stand without falling, who can govern without constantly flying abroad for medical treatment, who is physically and mentally fit for the enormous task of leading our nation."

The choice is ours. But we have to be willing to make it.

What do you think? Should Tinubu's health concerns disqualify him from running in 2027? Do Nigerians have a right to know the full extent of their president's health issues? And should we keep voting for leaders who obviously need constant medical attention? Drop your thoughts in the comments section!