President Bola Tinubu arrived in Rome, Italy, on Saturday evening, May 17, to attend the installation mass of Pope Leo XIV, the new head of the Roman Catholic Church.
The ceremony is scheduled to hold on Sunday, May 18.
He landed at the Mario De Bernardo Military Airport around 6 pm local time and was welcomed by Nigerian and Vatican officials, including Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu and the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.
President Tinubu travelled to Rome following an invitation from the Vatican.
The invitation, sent through Cardinal Pietro Parolin, requested his presence at the religious event, which comes at a time when many countries are facing various challenges.
Pope Leo XIV, now the 267th Bishop of Rome, reached out personally to President Tinubu, mentioning his past connection to Nigeria during his service in Lagos in the 1980s.
The president is accompanied by several senior Catholic leaders from Nigeria.
Among them are Archbishop Lucius Ugorji of Owerri, who also leads the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja, Archbishop Alfred Martins of Lagos, and Bishop Mathew Hassan Kukah of the Sokoto Diocese.
