President Tinubu sent a five-member delegation to the Vatican for Pope Francis' funeral, expressing condolences and honoring the late pope’s legacy.

President Bola Tinubu has dispatched a delegation to Vatican City to attend the funeral of Pope Francis, who passed away on Monday at the age of 88. This was disclosed in a statement issued on Friday by Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy. According to the statement, the delegation is led by Senate President Godswill Akpabio and consists of five members.

The other members of the delegation include Bianca Odumegwu Ojukwu, minister of state for foreign affairs; Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria; Matthew Hassan Kukah, archbishop of the Sokoto diocese; and Ignatius Ayua Kaigama, archbishop of the Abuja diocese.

The funeral of the highly esteemed leader of the Roman Catholic Church is scheduled to be held on Saturday at the Vatican.

As part of the official proceedings, the Nigerian delegation is expected to deliver a letter to the acting head of the Vatican, formally conveying President Tinubu’s condolences.

On Monday, President Tinubu joined the global Christian community in mourning the passing of Pope Francis. “Pope Francis was a humble servant of God, a tireless champion of the poor, and a guiding light for millions,” Tinubu stated in his tribute.

The president further described the pope’s death, which occurred shortly after Easter Sunday, as “a sacred return to his Maker at a time of renewed hope for Christians.”