Tinubu meets Sultan, other top religious leaders amid US designation on religious freedom

In a series of high-level consultations, President Bola Tinubu has held separate meetings with both the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, and the Archbishop of Abuja, Bishop Ignatius Ayau Kaigama, at the State House in Abuja.

These closed-door discussions are part of the President’s broader initiative to engage with the nation’s key moral and cultural figures. According to Presidency officials, the goal is to foster dialogue, strengthen social trust, and find ways to consolidate peace and enhance national integration.

The meetings are framed as a core part of Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope Agenda,” which emphasizes inclusivity and interfaith cooperation as essential for national stability and cohesion.

This diplomatic outreach occurs against a backdrop of international scrutiny. The discussions follow the recent decision by the United States under President Donald Trump to redesignate Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” on October 31, 2025, citing severe violations of religious freedom.

The U.S. report alleged “over 7,000 Christian deaths in the first seven months of 2025,” pointing to attacks by Boko Haram, ISWAP, and Fulani militants.

The Nigerian Federal Government has firmly rejected these allegations, maintaining that the country’s constitution protects interfaith harmony and dismissing the claims of a Christian genocide as “false narratives.”

About The Author

Dele Fashomi

Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.

Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.

He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.

Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).

He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.

He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.

Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled: Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.

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