Babachir Criticizes Tinubu’s Visit To The Pope, Calls It An “Insult To Christianity”

Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, has criticized President Bola Tinubu’s recent visit to the Vatican, where he met with Pope Leo XIV, calling the event “an insult to Christianity.”

Speaking during an interview on Arise Television on Wednesday, Lawal questioned the significance of the president’s presence at the papal inauguration and suggested the invitation could have been secured through lobbying efforts.

“You know that going to see the Pope is just a matter of your lobby. How well you can lobby and how many friends you have out there in the Vatican that can lobby for you. 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 said.

Lawal downplayed the significance of Tinubu joining other global leaders at the Vatican to exchange pleasantries with the Pope, stating that the visit does not represent a diplomatic milestone.

He further argued that Tinubu’s participation in the event only reinforces the long-standing criticism surrounding the Muslim-Muslim ticket that brought the president and Vice President Kashim Shettima to power.

“It reinforces my earlier belief that the Muslim-Muslim ticket is an insult to Christianity, had there been a senior Christian as a vice president. It’s only expected that he will be the one to represent the government. But now in Nigeria, we have a so-called Muslim visiting the Pope, leading a delegation of Catholics, eminent Catholics, to the Vatican. So it proves the fact that a Muslim-Muslim ticket is an unfair arrangement,” Lawal stated.

He suggested that had Tinubu selected a Christian running mate, the vice president would have been the appropriate figure to lead the delegation to the Vatican.

Lawal was an early supporter of Tinubu’s presidential bid ahead of the 2023 elections but withdrew his backing after Tinubu named fellow Muslim Kashim Shettima as his running mate—a move that sparked controversy within Christian communities and political circles.

President Tinubu’s visit to the Vatican had been widely publicized as part of his diplomatic engagements, but Lawal’s remarks underscore continuing divisions over the religious balance of Nigeria’s leadership.