Nigeria’s President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the elected leader of Africa’s most populous country, arrived in Bauchi State, northeastern Nigeria, on Saturday, December 20, 2025, as part of an official condolence visit following the death of a highly respected Islamic cleric, Sheikh Dahiru Usman Bauchi, whose influence on Islamic scholarship extended across Nigeria and parts of West Africa.
The President’s aircraft touched down at the Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa International Airport in Bauchi, Bauchi State, Nigeria, at approximately 4:09 pm, where he was formally received with a ceremonial guard of honour mounted by the Nigerian Air Force, Nigeria’s aerial warfare and air defence branch of the Armed Forces.
Okay News reports that the President was accompanied on the journey by several senior figures within Nigeria’s federal and political leadership. Among them were Tajudeen Abbas, Speaker of Nigeria’s House of Representatives, Mai Mala Buni, Governor of Yobe State in northeastern Nigeria, and Seyi Tinubu, a prominent entrepreneur and son of the President, alongside other top-ranking government officials.
Upon arrival, President Tinubu was welcomed by Bala Mohammed, Governor of Bauchi State; Caleb Mutfwang, Governor of Plateau State in Nigeria’s North-Central region; Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, Nigeria’s Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare; Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs; and Shehu Buba, the Senator representing the Bauchi South Senatorial District in Nigeria’s National Assembly.
The condolence visit formed part of the President’s broader national engagement to sympathize with the family, students, and followers of the late Sheikh Dahiru Usman Bauchi, whose decades-long contributions to Islamic education, preaching, and spiritual leadership left a profound mark on religious life in northern Nigeria and beyond.
Earlier on the same day, President Tinubu had arrived at the Muhammadu Buhari International Airport in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, northeastern Nigeria, for an official engagement. He was received by several state governors, including Babagana Zulum of Borno State, Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State, Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State, Agbu Kefas of Taraba State, Dikko Umar Radda of Katsina State, and Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State.
Also present to receive the President in Maiduguri were Barau Jibrin, Nigeria’s Deputy Senate President; Ahmed Lawan, a former President of the Nigerian Senate; Festus Keyamo, Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development; and Abubakar Kyari, Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Food Security.
