President Bola Tinubu has arrived in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to observe the lesser hajj and pray for Nigeria.
President Tinubu was welcomed on arrival on Thursday by Nigeria’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Yakubu Gambo, the CEO of BUA, Abdulsamad Rabiu, Senator A.A Yari, and Saudi Arabia’s Head of Royal Protocol, Ahmad bin Thafir.
Recall that President Tinubu left Abuja on Thursday for Makkah, Saudi Arabia, to perform the Umrah, also known as the lesser hajj.
Naija News reports that the presidential aircraft, an Airbus A330-200, took off at about 2.20 pm.
The governors of Kwara, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq; Borno, Babagana Zulum; Kaduna, Uba Sani; Sokoto, Ahmad Aliyu; Jigawa, Umar Namadi; and Yobe, Mai Mala Buni, saw the President off at the airport.
Also at the airport were the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume; the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi; Nigeria’s Ambassador to Mexico, Reno Omokri, and other government officials.
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, had announced the trip in a statement on Wednesday titled, “President Tinubu departs Abuja for Makkah to pray for the nation.”
Meanwhile, former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has alleged that President Bola Tinubu is heading to France and not Makkah, as announced by the presidency.
Atiku, in a statement on Wednesday, said credible intelligence available to him shows that Tinubu only used the Umrah pilgrimage announcement as a smokescreen.
He also raised questions about whether the trip is connected to the President’s health and a reported $20 billion loan request involving a French business partner.
Atiku called on the Presidency to address these concerns and disclose the President’s full itinerary.
Naija News reports that Atiku made the claims in a statement by the Director of Strategic Communication, ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu.
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