The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, will lead Nigeria’s delegation to Vatican City to attend the burial of Pope Francis on Saturday.
In a statement on Friday, presidential adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, revealed that the five-member delegation was constituted by President Bola Tinubu.
Other members of the delegation are the Minister of State, Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu Ojukwu; Archbishop Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria; Archbishop of Sokoto Diocese, Archbishop Matthew Hassan Kukah; and Archbishop of Abuja Diocese, Archbishop Ignatius Ayua Kaigama.
Pope Francis, the revered head of the Roman Catholic Church, died on Monday, April 21, 2025, at 88, just a day after appearing for Easter Sunday celebrations at the Vatican.
Onanuga noted that the delegation will formally deliver a letter conveying President Tinubu’s sympathy and condolences on Pope Francis’ passing to the Acting Head of the Vatican.
On Monday, President Tinubu joined the Catholic faithful and Christians worldwide to mourn the death of Pope Francis, who he described as “a humble servant of God, a tireless champion of the poor, and a guiding light for millions.”
In the condolence message, President Tinubu remarked that Pope Francis’s death, coming just after the celebration of Christ’s resurrection, is a sacred return to his Maker at a time of renewed hope for Christians.