Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, has criticized President Bola Tinubu’s meeting with Pope Leo XIV, calling it an affront to Christians in Nigeria.
Lawal, who appeared on Arise Television on Wednesday, argued that the President’s presence at the Vatican was likely arranged through lobbying and inducement, rather than being a diplomatic milestone.
“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.
“So, it is not as if it’s a major achievement to visit the Pope on his inauguration. It can be arranged in advance by lobbyists, probably with the correct inducement. So, Bola Tinubu going to visit the Pope is a non issue.”
He further maintained that the act underscored his long-standing objection to the Muslim-Muslim ticket that brought Tinubu to power, suggesting that a Christian vice president should have led such a delegation.
“It reinforces my earlier belief that the Muslim-Muslim ticket is an insult to Christianity,” he said.
“Had there a senior Christian as a vice president, it’s only expected that he will be the one to represent the government.”
He questioned the optics of a Muslim president leading Catholics to the Vatican, stating, “But now in Nigeria, we have a so-called Muslim visiting the Pope, leading a delegation of and Catholics, eminent Catholics, to the Vatican. So it proves the fact that a Muslim, Muslim ticket is an unfair arrangement.”
Lawal had initially supported Tinubu’s presidential bid but withdrew his support after Tinubu selected fellow Muslim Kashim Shettima as his running mate.
