President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has received an official invitation to Rome from His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, the newly elected head of the Roman Catholic Church, to attend his inauguration as the 267th Bishop of Rome.
The invitation was announced in a statement on Thursday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.
According to the statement, President Tinubu will depart Abuja on Saturday to attend a solemn mass at St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City, where Pope Leo XIV will be formally installed on Sunday, May 18.
In a letter delivered through Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Pope expressed the significance of the Nigerian President’s presence, referencing his fond memories of Nigeria during his service at the Apostolic Nunciature in Lagos in the 1980s.
“Your great nation is particularly dear to me,” Pope Leo wrote.
President Tinubu will be accompanied by top Catholic leaders from Nigeria, including Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Archbishop Lucius Ugorji of Owerri (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 Diocese.
Pope Leo XIV, formerly Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, was elected 27 days after the passing of Pope Francis on April 21. His election by the College of Cardinals ushers in a new era of Catholic leadership.
President Tinubu is expected to return to Abuja on Tuesday, May 20.
