Nigerian President Bola Tinubu met Pope Leo XIV during his inaugural mass at the Vatican on Sunday, joining other world leaders and millions around the world to celebrate the beginning of his papacy.
Tinubu, in a video posted on his X handle, hails Pope Leo XIV’s humility, noting that his “history with Nigeria, and message of peace remind us of the moral leadership the world desperately needs.
“As a nation of deep faith and great diversity, Nigeria remains committed to building bridges across belief, race, and continent—for peace, for progress, and for all of humanity. May the Almighty guide the Holy Father and strengthen all who labour for a more just and compassionate world.”
President Tinubu had travelled to Rome on Friday with an entourage that includes the Archbishop of Owerri and President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, Archbishop Lucius Ugorji, Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja, and Alfred Martins of Lagos.
Mathew Hassan Kukah, the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, was also in the President’s entourage as Tinubu meets Pope Leo at the start of his pontificate.
Pan-Atlantic Kompass gathered that Nigeria’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Mrs. Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu had travelled to the Vatican ahead of the trip by Tinubu.
President Tinubu is expected back to Nigeria on Tuesday, May 20, 2025.
World leaders present at the inauguration include US Vice President, J.D. Vance, Ukraine’s war-time leader, Volodymyr Zelensky, Israeli President Isaac Herzog and President Tinubu among other global figures.
Pope Leo XIV who met with Zelensky, holding talks with him after the inaugural mass, had earlier called for peace in Ukraine and Gaza in his first homily.
According to reports, Pope Leo’s first known call with a foreign leader after his election was with Zelensky.
At the end of the mass on Sunday, Leo cited the “martyred” Ukraine and appealed for a “just and lasting peace” in the beleagured country.
