In a statement released Thursday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, President Tinubu will be accompanied by top Catholic leaders from Nigeria as part of his official delegation.
Bola Tinubu will depart Abuja for Rome, Italy, on Saturday to attend the inauguration of Pope Leo XIV, following a special invitation from the newly elected leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
The President’s visit comes as Pope Leo XIV prepares to formally begin his pontificate with a solemn mass on Sunday at the Vatican.
In a statement released Thursday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, President Tinubu will be accompanied by top Catholic leaders from Nigeria as part of his official delegation.
The ceremony marks the beginning of his tenure as the 267th Bishop of Rome and spiritual head of over a billion Catholics worldwide.
In a formal invitation delivered through Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Pope Leo XIV explained the symbolic importance of President Tinubu’s presence.
“Your great nation is particularly dear to me, as I worked in the Apostolic Nunciature in Lagos during the 1980s,” the Pope wrote, recalling his personal connection to Nigeria.
He further noted that Tinubu’s attendance is vital “at this moment of particular importance for the Catholic Church and the world afflicted by many tensions and conflicts.”
The statement by the presidency read, “President Tinubu’s entourage includes the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Archbishop of Owerri and President of Catholic Bishops’
Conference of Nigeria, Archbishop Lucius Ugorji, Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja, and Alfred Martins of Lagos.”
According to Onanuga, the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mathew Hassan Kukah, is also in the president’s entourage.
He explained that Pope Leo XIV, formerly Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, will be formally installed to the exalted office on Sunday, May 18, at St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican.
“The Conclave of Cardinals elected him 27 days after his predecessor, Pope Francis, died on April 21.”
Onanuga added that President Tinubu will return to Abuja on Tuesday, May 20.
