The Presidency has dismissed a report suggesting that President Bola Tinubu is scheduled to visit the United States on Tuesday for a meeting with U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance.
The clarification was issued on Monday by Temitope Ajayi, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, who described the report as false, misleading, and speculative.
In a post shared via his official X handle, Ajayi said the story had fuelled unnecessary public debate and “uninformed commentaries.”
“There’s a Sahara Reporters story that President Tinubu is going to the U.S. on Tuesday to see U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance. That story is not true. I can see that the fake news by Sahara has become the basis for some uninformed commentaries since yesterday. If President Tinubu is going to the White House, he won’t be going to see a Vice President,” he wrote.
Ajayi clarified that if the President were to visit the White House, he would be meeting with President Donald Trump, not the Vice President.
The denial follows reports that Tinubu was planning a visit to Washington for what some described as “top-level diplomatic engagements.” The speculation intensified amid global attention on claims of Christian persecution in Nigeria and a controversial statement by U.S.
President Donald Trump, who threatened possible military action.
In a post on his Truth Social account on Saturday, Trump said the U.S. might “go in guns blazing” if the Nigerian government failed to address alleged attacks on Christians.
“If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the USA will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.
I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our cherished Christians,” he wrote.
In response to the growing controversy, President Tinubu dismissed allegations of a “Christian genocide” in Nigeria, reaffirming that the nation remains a democracy committed to religious liberty and equality.
In an official statement shared via his X handle, the President said:
“Nigeria stands firmly as a democracy governed by constitutional guarantees of religious liberty.”
He added:
“Since 2023, our administration has maintained an open and active engagement with Christian and Muslim leaders alike and continues to address security challenges which affect citizens across faiths and regions.”
Tinubu also rejected external portrayals of Nigeria as a religiously intolerant nation, describing such claims as inaccurateand unreflective of the country’s diversity and commitment to peaceful coexistence.
“The characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality, nor does it take into consideration the consistent and sincere efforts of the government to safeguard freedom of religion and beliefs for all Nigerians,” Tinubu stated.
Reaffirming the nation’s values, the President said:
“Religious freedom and tolerance have been a core tenet of our collective identity and shall always remain so. Nigeria opposes religious persecution and does not encourage it.”
He further pledged continued collaboration with the United States and other international partners to protect religious communities and promote mutual understanding.
“Nigeria is a country with constitutional guarantees to protect citizens of all faiths. Our administration is committed to working with the United States government and the international community to deepen understanding and cooperation on the protection of communities of all faiths,” Tinubu affirmed.
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