President Bola Ahmed Tinubu arrived in Rome, Italy, on Saturday to join other world leaders at the inauguration mass for His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, the 267th Bishop of Rome and new leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
The solemn mass, which marks the beginning of the Pope’s pontificate, is scheduled for Sunday, May 18.
According to Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, President Tinubu’s aircraft touched down at the Mario De Bernardi Military Airport at 6:00 p.m. local time. He was received by Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, along with officials from Vatican City and Nigeria’s Embassy in Italy.
Tinubu is attending at the personal invitation of Pope Leo XIV, conveyed through Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State. The invitation highlighted the Pope’s recognition of Nigeria’s global importance and his past service in Lagos during the 1980s.
“The presence of your great nation is particularly dear to me,” Pope Leo XIV noted in his message to the Nigerian leader.
Accompanying the President are prominent Nigerian Catholic leaders, including Archbishop Lucius Ugorji of Owerri and President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria; Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja; Archbishop Alfred Martins of Lagos; and Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of Sokoto.
