Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, has criticized President Bola Tinubu’s recent visit to the Vatican City for the inauguration of Pope Leo XIV, describing the event as a “non-issue” and an “insult to Christianity.”
Lawal, who spoke during an interview on Arise Television on Wednesday, dismissed the significance of the President’s attendance at the historic papal ceremony, alleging that such visits can be orchestrated by lobbyists with the right influence and inducements.
“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 in the Vatican that can lobby for you. So, it is not as if it’s a major achievement,” Lawal said.
President Tinubu joined other world leaders at the Vatican to attend Pope Leo XIV’s inauguration and exchanged pleasantries with the Pontiff during the ceremony. The event has been widely hailed by some observers as a gesture of religious tolerance.
However, Lawal, a former ally of President Tinubu, said the optics of a Muslim president leading a delegation of Christian leaders to the Vatican only underscores the contentious nature of the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket that brought Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima to power.
“It reinforces my earlier belief that the Muslim-Muslim ticket is an insult to Christianity,” Lawal stated. “Had there been a senior Christian vice president, it would have been expected that he would represent the government at such an event.”
He argued that Tinubu likely would not have attended the event personally if his deputy were a Christian, suggesting that the current arrangement marginalizes Christian representation at the highest level of government.
Lawal was an early supporter of Tinubu’s presidential bid but withdrew his backing after the All Progressives Congress (APC) selected Shettima as the running mate, leading to widespread controversy over religious balance in the national leadership.
While some Christian leaders have praised Tinubu’s participation in the Vatican event as a symbol of unity, Lawal remains adamant that it reflects deeper issues of religious insensitivity within the current administration.
Comments