Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, has downplayed President Bola Tinubu’s recent visit to the Vatican for the inauguration of Pope Leo XIV, describing it as “not a big deal” and a “non-issue.”
Tinubu attended the ceremony in Rome on Sunday, May 18, at the invitation of the new Pope, conveyed through Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State. The President returned to Abuja on Tuesday night after joining other world leaders in greeting the pontiff.
Speaking on Arise Television, Lawal argued that such visits are often arranged through lobbying and connections rather than reflecting any significant diplomatic achievement. “You know that going to see the Pope is just a matter of your lobby. How well you can lobby, how many friends you have out there in the Vatican that can lobby for you,” he said. He further suggested that the visit might have involved “the correct inducement.”
Lawal’s criticism extended to the composition of the Nigerian presidency, asserting that Tinubu’s meeting with the Pope “reinforces my earlier belief that the Muslim-Muslim ticket is an insult to Christianity.” He argued that if there were a Christian Vice President, that person would have represented the government at the Vatican. “But now in Nigeria, we have a so-called Muslim visiting the Pope, leading a delegation of eminent Catholics to the Vatican. So it proves the fact that a Muslim-Muslim ticket is an unfair arrangement,” Lawal stated.
The former SGF’s comments come amid ongoing debates about Nigeria’s religious representation at the highest levels of government, highlighting tensions over the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket that Tinubu ran on. Despite the controversy, Tinubu’s delegation to the Vatican included senior Catholic clergy, reflecting the official nature of the visit.
