Tinubu Confers National Honours On 1,062 Persons In Three Years

President Bola Tinubu has conferred national honours on at least 1,062 Nigerians and foreign nationals, living and dead, in nearly three years in office, findings have shown.

Naija News reports that the figure is higher than the total number of honours awarded by his immediate predecessor, the late President Muhammadu Buhari, during his eight years in office.

It is also more than three times the number conferred by former President Goodluck Jonathan during his major 2014 investiture.

Findings by Punch showed that the largest batch of Tinubu’s honours was ratified on October 9, 2025, when the National Council of State approved the report of the National Honours Award Committee for 2024 and 2025.

The Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Affairs Office, Dr Emanso Umobong, told State House correspondents after the meeting that the committee had screened over 5,000 nominations.

According to her, the committee recommended 824 recipients for the regular 2024/2025 National Honours and 135 individuals for special presidential awards, bringing the total for that batch to 959.

The committee was reconstituted in August 2021 under the chairmanship of Justice Sidi Bage.

Super Eagles, Soldiers Honoured

Aside from the 2025 batch, Tinubu also conferred honours on several individuals and groups, including members of the Armed Forces.

On February 13, 2024, he honoured players and officials of the Super Eagles with Member of the Order of the Niger awards after they won silver at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Through the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, the President also granted each team member a plot of land and a flat in the FCT.

On March 17, 2024, Tinubu conferred national honours on 17 soldiers killed in Delta State on March 14, 2024.

He also announced housing for their families, scholarships for their children up to university level and payment of death benefits within 90 days.

Lagbaja, Democracy Heroes Decorated

At the funeral of the late Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Taoreed Lagbaja, on November 15, 2024, Tinubu conferred on him the posthumous national honour of Commander of the Federal Republic.

On January 15, 2026, during the Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration, Brig Gen Musa Uba, who was killed in a November 2025 ISWAP ambush in Damboa, Borno State, received a posthumous Gallantry Award.

On June 12, 2025, during Democracy Day at the National Assembly, Tinubu announced posthumous and living national honours for over 80 democracy heroes.

They included Prof Wole Soyinka, GCON; the late Kudirat Abiola, CFR; Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, GCFR; Prof Humphrey Nwosu, CON; Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni Nine, OON each; Bishop Matthew Kukah, CON; Femi Falana (SAN), CON; and veteran journalist Sam Amuka-Pemu, CON.

Many of the honourees were also granted presidential pardons.

Modi, Bill Gates, Chagoury Honoured

Tinubu has also conferred Nigerian national honours on foreign nationals.

On November 17, 2024, he conferred the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a bilateral meeting at the Presidential Villa.

The President said the honour was “to signify our appreciation of India as Nigeria’s partner.”

On June 4, 2025, Tinubu conferred the Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic on Microsoft co-founder and Bill Gates Foundation chairman, Bill Gates, for interventions in maternal health, agriculture and infectious disease research in Nigeria.

One of the most controversial awards came on January 8, 2026, when Tinubu awarded Lebanese-Nigerian businessman Gilbert Chagoury the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger on his 80th birthday.

The award was not announced through a public ceremony or Presidency statement and became public after billionaire Femi Otedola posted a copy of the certificate on 𝕏.

Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, later confirmed the conferment, saying it was for Chagoury’s “various services to Nigeria, on the economic front, hospitality industry and so on.”

Buhari, Jonathan Figures

Under Buhari, the only major investiture was held on October 11, 2022, at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, where 447 recipients were decorated.

They included World Trade Organisation Director-General, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, both GCON.

Grammy-winning singer Burna Boy was also honoured, while the late Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, received a posthumous CFR.

Jonathan held the 2013/2014 combined investiture on September 29, 2014, decorating 304 recipients.

They included service chiefs, Nigerian flag designer Pa Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi, an Abuja taxi driver who returned N6m left in his cab and a dancing traffic warden.

Yar’Adua, Obasanjo Honours

In December 2008, the late President Umaru Yar’Adua conferred national honours on 278 persons in his only investiture.

At the time, late human rights lawyer, Gani Fawehinmi (SAN), rejected the Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic, citing “many years of misrule since independence.”

Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Head of Service, Gidado Idris, also rejected the Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic.

Under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, at least 449 persons received national honours at two investitures in December 2004 and September 2006.

The National Honours system was instituted by the National Honours Act of 1964 and is now governed by the Cap. N43 of the Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

It is administered by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, which receives nominations, processes them through the National Honours Award Committee and forwards screened names to the President for approval.

The two principal classes are the Order of the Federal Republic and the Order of the Niger. The President remains the sole authority empowered to confer national honours.

So far, at least 6,400 persons have been honoured since the system was inaugurated in 1963.